Parenting..........

Action Step

The following guidelines are called the “super Ts” and are the foundation of any good parenting, whether the parent is single or not. They are a basic guide for all parents on how to build relationship and bring up a happy and healthy child. (It should be apparent that for many of these tasks, the single parent will need the help of other adults. No one person can accomplish all these alone.)

Time
Kids spell love T-I-M-E. There is no substitute for every hour, minute, and second of quality time fathers and mothers spend with their children. Kids need heavy doses of you every day if possible.

Touch
A hug and kiss, holding hands, brushing hair, wrestling, high fives, even cuddling on the couch—most child experts agree kids need at least eleven touches a day. Christian child psychiatrist Grace Ketterman once told me she believes children need at least one hundred loving touches a day!
Talk
Find the interests you and your child share, and talk! Or ask your child about his or her day. Remember, communication is more nonverbal than verbal, so be careful of all the different ways you “speak” to your child.
Truth
Deuteronomy 6:6–7 says, “These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (NIV). Parents’ morals fill the little hands and hearts of their children. Therefore, ground your child in the truth of God’s Word.
Tenderness
Tenderness is to love unconditionally, and it is having a soft hand of discipline—even when children irritate, argue, or disappoint. It is the same message Jesus shouts to us—in any condition of sin or grace, we are worth everything to Him!
Also learn the way your child gives and receives love and overdose him or her with that love! According to Christian child psychologist Fran Stott, “Every child needs at least one person who’s crazy about him.”
Teaching
Whether present or absent, a parent is always teaching something to his or her child. Your child learned something from you today, guaranteed. Don’t miss a moment to teach your child important life lessons. And if one parent is absent, assure the child that he or she deserves two parents—even though one might not be around.
Tenacity
Today kids need structure and stability more than ever, for their lives are more erratic, confusing, and rapidly changing than for any generation in history! Parents, be a reference point, an anchor that holds firmly against powerful countercurrents.
The hardest part of parenting is staying persistent. Your investment now is what your child has to “bank” on as he or she grows into a compassionate, competent adult. The truth is children grow up way too soon. Never quit being the parent your child needs.
Tomorrow
The most beautiful part of God’s love for us is in what Scripture calls the “blessed hope”—an eternity with Him in heaven. Parents, fill your children’s hearts with hope. Believe in them. Dream with them. Look expectantly to the future! Be big on praise, forgiveness, and grace—and be small on criticism. There is no better inheritance—no amount of money or privilege or worldly power—that can compare to a legacy of hope in a godly future.
Biblical Insights

"For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. Therefore I also have lent him to the LORD; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the LORD." So they worshiped the LORD there. 1 Samuel 1:27–28

Parenting is demanding and rewarding. Many people prepare and study for years to enter a chosen profession, but for parenting it’s usually on-the-job training. The goal of parenting is to eventually let the children go...