Sheneka Land
Ministry With Families
Dr. Jackie Johns
A Failed Parent in Scripture
Successful parenting requires generous doses of wisdom and discernment. I presuppose that most parents strive to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the parenthood calling, but the very state of humanity now and again leaves us falling short in our desire to interact with our children in appropriate fashion. Repeating mistakes from our families of origin inevitably leads to repeated parental failures. In conjunction with generational dysfunction, fatigue and discouragement within the heart are also factors that can cause a parent to flounder. In the Old Testament story of Jacob’s life, we can easily observe these depressive forces at work in Jacob with regard to his parenting habits.
The account of Jacob’s life is found in the book of Genesis. Sadly, his life story is filled with domestic dysfunction early on and continues into his old age. Deception, pride, adultery, rape, arrogance, favoritism and jealousy are some of the despairing sins found in his family history. Lack of mutual respect and relationship common sense is found throughout his generational line.
Jacob is characterized in Scripture as passive, and because of his disregard and detachment, his children suffered spiritually and emotionally. One temptation leading to failure in parenting is to surrender to burnout and despair, which gives birth to indifference and passivity. All parents become weary in well-doing; however, exhaustion does not grant us reason or excuse to abort the important mission of nurturing and protecting our children.
As the story of Jacob wended on through history into his senior years, it seems that his fatigue and discouragement became more profound as he grieved the death of his beloved Rachel and his son Joseph. One can easily envision the face of a drained, elderly father and grandfather with a downturned mouth, lifeless eyes, and furrowed brows as testimony to his despair and heartbreak over the course of his dysfunctional family life.
Though Jacob’s story has a slightly, happy ending, much is to be contemplated within this chronicle of a failed parent. How can we, as readers, steer clear of a similar failure? How can we, as the body of Christ, enable parents to be successful, spiritual leaders to their children?
As the church, we have a responsibility to build one another up through the love, power and witness of the Lord Jesus. As we are connected together as multi-generational parents, we can find and give mutual support so that dysfunction, fatigue and discouragement are dissipated within the lives of parents so they will not fail their children. Herein, we prove the love and affection that is to define the family of God.
Ministry With Families
Dr. Jackie Johns
A Failed Parent in Scripture
Successful parenting requires generous doses of wisdom and discernment. I presuppose that most parents strive to conduct themselves in a manner worthy of the parenthood calling, but the very state of humanity now and again leaves us falling short in our desire to interact with our children in appropriate fashion. Repeating mistakes from our families of origin inevitably leads to repeated parental failures. In conjunction with generational dysfunction, fatigue and discouragement within the heart are also factors that can cause a parent to flounder. In the Old Testament story of Jacob’s life, we can easily observe these depressive forces at work in Jacob with regard to his parenting habits.
The account of Jacob’s life is found in the book of Genesis. Sadly, his life story is filled with domestic dysfunction early on and continues into his old age. Deception, pride, adultery, rape, arrogance, favoritism and jealousy are some of the despairing sins found in his family history. Lack of mutual respect and relationship common sense is found throughout his generational line.
Jacob is characterized in Scripture as passive, and because of his disregard and detachment, his children suffered spiritually and emotionally. One temptation leading to failure in parenting is to surrender to burnout and despair, which gives birth to indifference and passivity. All parents become weary in well-doing; however, exhaustion does not grant us reason or excuse to abort the important mission of nurturing and protecting our children.
As the story of Jacob wended on through history into his senior years, it seems that his fatigue and discouragement became more profound as he grieved the death of his beloved Rachel and his son Joseph. One can easily envision the face of a drained, elderly father and grandfather with a downturned mouth, lifeless eyes, and furrowed brows as testimony to his despair and heartbreak over the course of his dysfunctional family life.
Though Jacob’s story has a slightly, happy ending, much is to be contemplated within this chronicle of a failed parent. How can we, as readers, steer clear of a similar failure? How can we, as the body of Christ, enable parents to be successful, spiritual leaders to their children?
As the church, we have a responsibility to build one another up through the love, power and witness of the Lord Jesus. As we are connected together as multi-generational parents, we can find and give mutual support so that dysfunction, fatigue and discouragement are dissipated within the lives of parents so they will not fail their children. Herein, we prove the love and affection that is to define the family of God.