I’m with my niece. She has two kids, and she and her husband are being intentional about their parenting. Their son is just ready to enter Grade one – he has reading skills and is quite the conversationalist. They read the Psalms to him each evening. He knows Bible stories and enjoys conversations with his parents.
I am moving towards a blended family. That means that I am looking around and observing. I’m researching and reading.
There are many different family styles. Dealing with the obvious selfishness that children can bring to their lives (“I don’t want to share”), we have the opportunity to steer them towards being good citizens and lovers of others.
I suppose one thing I am trying to learn is that we (young and old) have a sinful nature, but often times the triggers for our temptation can be sidestepped. Flee from evil! Perhaps a part of parenting is helping our kids (each one is an individual) know what leads them in the un-right path.
Lots of work to observe and know our kids, but intentional parenting is well worth it.