As a mama to 8, I’ve heard the gamut of comments when I’m out and about with my children in tow. Some of them have been great and really strengthened and encouraged me in my journey of motherhood. Other comments have just been awful and unthinkable—and said right in front of my children.
One such comment was given when my oldest children were the baby, 2, and 4 years old. It went something like this: “Oh, they’re cute now–just wait until they get to their teenage years!!!” And this woman just looked at me as though she had pronounced a sure and certain doom in my life. I don’t think I said much in response, but I remember thinking, “Nope! I don’t have to accept that!” And, I didn’t.
So many people have this idea, the expectation even, that because our children become teenagers that they will become monsters who no longer listen to us and all of a sudden become out of touch and out of hand. I just do not accept this idea. I’ve not seen in God’s Word yet that I’m supposed to stop parenting my teens and just throw up both my hands in wonder about their behavior. Of course, no teen is without difficult days and rough patches, but then which one of us is? However, I refuse to see my teens’ regular growing pains as some gloomy label to place upon them.
No, I continue to parent, continue to stay the course, continue to set appropriate boundaries, and continue to seek God on their behalf as I did when they were little, and all the while, I enjoy them! Teens are a blessing, just as a newborn baby is. Our children do not somehow lose their worth and their value because they’ve gotten older. God’s Word says children are a blessing to us and I notice no age limitations on that blessing.
I have 3 teenagers in the house right now and life is good. They are growing into their young adulthood and we are having all of the conversations–from Faith in God to owning a home, from learning to drive to courtship, from talking taxes to decorating tips–the conversations are in-depth and building. These once-tiny folks I’ve been raising are maturing and growing in their faith and intellect. And not to mention the laughter!!! My teens have had their father and me doubled over in laughter, as their personalities just shine through.
Truthfully, my teens are some of my best friends. My oldest children have demonstrated their love and loyalty to our family in such meaningful ways: through a very difficult move, through illness, through pregnancy loss and more. Their faithfulness to the Lord and devotion to our family is such a sweet harvest, just full of the goodness of God. And then, there’s the day-to-day help they add to the family: cooking meals, running errands, helping a sibling, cutting the grass, etc.—all practical things that make a home run smoothly. I am so grateful for the helping hand they add to the daily do’s. These tasks are necessary and give my teens practice for their own homes and families one day.
So, what’s the point? The point is to reject the world’s lies and continue to remain committed on behalf of your children. There are so many traps and snares that await our sons and daughters in their teen years. Be aware, reject the lies, protect them and continue to bring them up in the ways of the Lord. Do not abandon them because they are older–they still need you!! And while you’re doing the hard and diligent work of raising them, enjoy them. Have fun with them. Laugh with them. Listen to them. Play something with them. Love them. They are our babies, too!
Do you have teenagers at home? In what ways do you enjoy your teens? Has anyone you because you are parenting teens?
