Mommas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Leaders? Part I

This is an article that I wrote for World Shapers Ministry. You can check out their website here. I have reprinted this article in agreement with their requirements. I will be reprinting Part II in the days to come.

Mommas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Leaders? Part I

Being a leader is about influencing people. In Mark 16:15 Christians are called to go into all the world and share the good news with everyone. This would definitely influence people. This should, at the very least, leave a distinguishing effect on our schools, communities, and places of employment. Christians are called to be leaders. Even though this is understood, there is no scripture that defines the exact age at which we are called to be a leader to those in our sphere of influence.

If you believe that leadership is too much pressure to place on your child then I suggest you follow these easy steps to avoid having your children develop as leaders:

Decision-Making - Don’t burden children with decision making. It will just make them grow up too fast. They’ll have to learn soon enough when they start to earn a living and have to make their own choices of how to spend their time.

Gifts & Abilities - Don’t hurt their self-esteem with skill or gifting assessment. We’re all winners. Tell them they are gifted at everything they try even when it’s not really true at all. This way they will not really know what they’re good at and they won’t have the added pressure developing in one direction.

Responsibility – Teach you children to take responsibility by having them clean their room. Make sure that you remind them every day to do this and do it for them if you have to. This way they will learn that someone has to take responsibility.

Commitments - Make judgments based on how you feel moment by moment. Allow them to break commitments and be late when something comes up.

Authority - Question everything. Make sure your child understands that they do not have to obey their teachers or coaches if they think that you might allow the child to do something differently. It’s best to always believe your child over anyone else without question.

Priorities - Keep the kids well-rounded. Carve out prime chunks of time for friends, school, work, sports and arts. Enroll them in every conceivable class because they’ll make loads of friends. An overly full schedule means you are involved and much more important.

Prayer - Pray in private. Bedtime and mealtime prayers will suffice for now. Children just don’t have the patience for long adult prayers they don’t understand.

The Bible - Keep them in their child storybook as long as possible. They just won’t understand the real Bible.

Civic Responsibility - Separation of church and state isn’t just for politics. Don’t mix God with current events.

Roles -Men and women do whatever works best for your family as far as gender roles and responsibilities. The roles established in the Bible were for a different time and place.

Friends - Don’t interfere with their friendships. They need to learn to choose their own friends and deal with their own problems.

Service - Make sure to tell the children when you serve the Lord so that they will know that you are doing good.

If you have been challenged by these comments I encourage you to read the second part of this article. We will look at a path which will ask much of the parent and produce much in the child.

Beth Klongpayabal
www.wsmworldshapersministry.org
Klongpayabal@wsmworldshapersministry.org