It has been awhile, and a lot has been on my mind. It is easy to say what is happening in your kids life when things are good, but difficult to share when things are shaken up a bit.

I have to think of how what I say will affect them, so I share carefully. Parenting is very difficult. I know my children are not my report card and I have also heard "A mom is only as happy as her saddest child." That has been my experience lately. When your child chooses something you would not choose for them, it is about unconditional love while still being an active parent.Parent in the verb tense. Parenting as the Lord would lead me without condemnation toward their choices.

I think of the difference between things that are not negotiable to those that are still permissable. Hard line as a parent.I want to share my opinion before it is sought, I want to share consequences before they are experienced. I want to share regret before it is felt. These are the things parents feel to the inmost core. I want to protect them from some of the life lessons that grow them to be the adults they are becoming, all the while praying that the lessons learned could be without the harsh reality that lies within.

So the Lord moves me to rely on Him and not my own skills {or lack of}. Each day prompts me to seek God with a knee-mail! Knowing my strength comes from Him alone as I journey this parenting season is the driving force that keeps me motivated when I am discouraged.