Pastor's Corner: Moms in prayer

It's not easy raising kids. Any parent will tell you that. But the rapidly changing times that we live in certainly emphasize, if not compound the issues that parents face in our culture today. Worries have always lurked for any parent that will entertain them – concerns about a child's behavior, the friends they choose, whether they are being bullied in school (or if they are the bully), are they completing their homework (and turning it in), do they stay buckled in the car, and when was the last time they cleaned their room anyway?

For today's parents, this list may be minor to the concerns they wrestle with each day. A quick scroll through articles from a popular parenting website highlight some of the issues that weigh heaviest on those raising youth in the 21st century. One of the top concerns seems to be parenting as a single, divorced, or remarried parent. Due to a variety of circumstances, many children are no longer living with their own parents.

No matter who the parent or guardian is, education about mental health has those who are raising children concerned about stress and anxiety in their dependents, not to mention themselves. As public schools face teacher burn-out, ever-shifting curriculum, and low budgets, parents are making serious considerations over who can offer the best education. Should they send their child off to the public schools, private schools, charter schools, religious schools, or entertain the notion of home schooling? Is their child getting the right nutrition, getting enough sleep and exercise, balancing the right social avenues, and making sound choices?

Addictions to substances have topped parenting lists for decades, but new addictions have surfaced, specifically in regards to social media and technology. With today's buffet of social issues that declare gender as relative, morals as restrictive, and AI as the latest trend toward identity theft, is there any wonder parents are getting hyper-sensitive and grandparents are sighing, "I'm so glad I'm not raising kids these days."

Admit it, if you're not a parent, you've said this, if only to yourself. But parents these days don't need our pity, or even our sympathy. They need our prayers and support.

That's why Havre is a new site for Moms In Prayer International. This is a weekly gathering of mothers and grandmothers who desire to "seek the Lord and His strength" (Psalm 105:4) as we stand in the gap for our children, our schools, and our community. This is a non-denominational group that seeks community and purpose through the nurture of prayer. And there is so much to pray about!

If you would like to join Moms In Prayer of Havre, contact me at 406-344-2347. As our teens and children embark upon another school season, let us clothe them in prayer and adorn them with the care and attention of our Heavenly Father.

--

Theresa Danley, CLP

Milk River Churches