As we prepare for our kids to head back to school, the pressure of new schedules, new faces, unknown expectations, and instilling loving discipline and confidence in our children can be a lot to handle.
I was reminded this morning that, despite all of this anxiety and pressure, as parents, we are to walk in faith through it all. Our kids are growing and becoming more independent day-by-day. So many times we feel like we have to be the one to make their lunches, to pack their backpacks, to lay out their clothes. But is that our job? I don’t think it is.
Our job is to teach our children to do these things for themselves. But how do we find peace knowing our kids aren’t fully capable yet of succeeding without us? We have to have faith.
We have to trust that, when we allow our kids to fail, we are instilling discipline in them. We have to remain focused on the fact that disciplining our kids is really teaching them about self-discipline. Hebrews 12:11 says, “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have trained by it.”
So, as our kids go back to school, let’s remind ourselves that the anxiety we feel over it all is normal. If we want our children to succeed, we can’t lose sight of what God is doing in this season of our lives.