“Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old, they will not turn from it.” Proverbs 22:6
As parents, you have the job to train up your children in the way they should go, which means it’s on you to teach them how to live their lives by God’s principles. While this will involve a lot of intentional teaching and directing, more importantly, it will involve a lot of modeling. And there’s nothing your kids have access to more than your marriage and what goes on inside your home.
By default, your children are learning key things about life just from watching you and how you and your spouse interact. They will learn key things like:
- How to communicate
- How to have conflict and how to feel about conflict
- How to love
- How to be in relationship with others,
and most importantly, - How to be in relationship with Jesus
What this means for you, Mom and Dad, is that you not only have to be intentional about teaching them these things, but you also must be aware of the ways you may be unintentionally teaching them wrong things.
The good news here is that investing in your marriage and taking responsibility for what you are bringing to the marriage table is half the battle. There are so many good dividends for you, your marriage, and your children simply by investing in your marriage and making it a priority.
All too often as parents, you want to prioritize the kids and put all your focus on them, but the best way you can help your children become successful in life, both mentally and emotionally, is by investing in your marriage. Your safe, connected, loving, God-centered home, will provide the perfect place for them to thrive, grow and learn.
It’s time to not just correct and guide your children, but to also lead them by example.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Expedition Marriage
Featured Image by Monsterkoi from Pixabay
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