You may have heard new grandparents say something like this, “If I only knew how much fun grand-parenting was, I’d have chosen to do that first!”
Of course, that’s humorous, but only because it’s impossible.
If you were given the choice between building a house’s foundation or its structure first, which would you choose?
Well, the choice would be obvious, because the goal is not just a pretty structure in the moment, but a sound and solid one that endures the test of time. Doing the right things in the right order is crucial for long-term success (Matthew 7:24-27).
Strong Foundations Matter
The same principle is true in parenting—strong foundations matter! Prioritizing the right things in the right seasons will set you up for greater long-term success and less long-term regret.
Because it aligns you with God’s proven plan of sowing and reaping.
As parents, we only get 18 years for the overall parenting season.
So if life is a vapor, parenting is a mist (James 4:14), and we only have one brief chance to get this once-in-a-lifetime season right.
But how in the world do we successfully navigate an 18-year journey and sometimes multiple 18-year journeys that overlap with multiple children?
And what if we’re already smack dab in the middle of our parenting years, or even approaching the end?
The good news is there is an answer, and it’s found in…
A Proper Understanding of the Four Parenting Seasons
The overall 18-year parenting season is itself composed of four smaller seasons that, if understood and executed biblically, will lead to godly parenting success.
Because each season builds a proper foundation by setting you up for success in the next season.
Proverbs 22:6 reminds us that God has “the way” planned for each of our children, and our job is to train them according to that specific way.
The end of the verse references the final season of parenting as “when he is old,” or when our child is no longer under our parental authority.
God has given you four seasons of parenting with your children, and the fourth season is the “when he is old” season.
That means you have been given just three seasons in which you’ll intentionally guide your child “in the way he should go.”
Giving a proper understanding of the four seasons of parenting and how to maximize each one is a big reason I wrote the book, Godly Parenting. It provides a practical how-to guide to follow no matter where you find yourself on your parenting journey.
Praying for you as you engage in sowing and reaping today!
“And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Galatians 6:9
