Raising Adults

Today’s culture is all about raising children.

No, I don’t mean they are committed to the raising OF their children, rather they are, by default, raising children who will always ACT LIKE children.

Why is this and how can we avoid this?

1.  Parent with a goal in mind. Any of you who read my blog know how important I believe goals are.  Your family, your homeschool, your life needs to have vision and purpose so when times are hard and you want to give up, you always have a way to see the forest for the trees.

When it comes to raising adults, you must have a goal in mind for what your children as adults should look like.

Spiritually strong?  Put Bible study above academics.
Generous?  Teach money management.
Compassionate?  Involve them in outreach ministries and encourage them to give of themselves.

Think about the traits you wish them to possess as adults and then parent accordingly.

2.  Give them responsibilities. Even at a young age, children can do big things.  In fact, they can often do quite a bit more than we give them credit for.  As they age and mature, we should be adding more to their plate and expecting proficiency at those responsibilities.

In addition to your typical household chores, also begin teaching them what it takes to run a household.  Let them use your debit card or write checks, change diapers, shop for groceries, cook meals, call repairmen, cut down trees, pack suitcases, etc.  Show them how, and then give them opportunities to try for themselves.

3.  Avoid foolish pursuits. Our world is full of things to do that have little to no value to them.  As parents, we often shrug our shoulders at those things and say something like, “But, it’s fun,” or, “They’re just children,” never realizing the full extent of the attitude we are promoting in their tiny hearts and minds.  Just because something is fun and just because you are a certain age, does not mean you are guaranteed an excuse to waste time chasing after foolishness.  Before you know it, you’ll have adults who can’t hold a job because they “just” graduated from college and people who walk out on their spouses because of a “midlife” crisis.  Don’t allow, encourage, or excuse foolishness based on age or level of entertainment.

The blessing of raising children who will someday be adults is not something to be taken lightly.  As Christians, we mustn’t fall into the trap of lackadaisical parenting where we simply let life happen and hope everything turns out okay in the end.  We must search the Scriptures, ask for the Lord’s guidance day in and day out, and be willing to make the sacrifices to do the difficult and unpopular things.

The world doesn’t need more oversized irresponsible children.  It needs strong, battle-ready adults who serve the Lord with all their might and make a difference for Him.

About The Author

Amy has written 14 articles on this blog.

Amy is the homeschooling mother of soon-to-be 6 living children and a precious little girl named Emily in Heaven. You can find Amy blogging about the joy and grief of raising these wonderful little arrows at Raising Arrows.

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