Preparing to Parent TeensSample

Day One: Introduction

I am often asked by parents of tweens (8-12 year olds), what they should be doing to prepare for the teenage years. Deciding to become an intentional parent doesn’t happen overnight. Where do you begin? Well, you begin with yourself! And you begin with a big picture God.

Proverbs 22:6 is probably the all-time most used verse for getting parenting right: “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it.” Did you know that the root of “train up” is the term for “the palate, the roof of the mouth”? In Solomon’s times, midwives dipped their fingers in a date syrup and massaged the gums and palate of the newborn with the juice to stimulate the sensation of sucking. Then the baby would be given to his mother to start breastfeeding. The expression, “train up” means to develop a thirst. What does it look like to create a thirst in our child? I believe it looks like casting a vision for living with and for a big picture God.

This little devotional is meant to be a primer to help you navigate your own heart and prepare you to parent your teen. Let's get started.

Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for the gift of parenting and for the multiple ways you use my children in the redemption of my own story. I am weary and overwhelmed and long for your guidance. My heart’s desire is to get it right, so I place myself and my children in your hands. I surrender to you and the story you are telling through us.