Parenting by Design - January 11

Conversations about Kids

Gal. 6:14: May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world (NIV). 

One of the blessings of parenthood is watching our children succeed. Many parents felt an instant connection to Deborah Phelps as the TV cameras showed her enthusiastically rooting on her son, Michael, during the 2008 winter Olympic. And her enthusiasm was rewarded when he finished the games with 8 gold medals! Moments like that are to be enjoyed, but they raise an interesting question—where does excitement end and boasting begin?

Gal. 5:26 says, "Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another." Have you been involved in conversations with other parents and felt yourself swelling with either pride or envy? It seems many of us feel the need to validate ourselves through our children, yet this is the very thing we are instructed not to do. When talking about our kids to others, we might use these passages as a "motive check."

Is God glorified when you speak about your children?