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Who Is Your Shepherd?
And other questions to ask along the way
As you are working out your own parenting style, be discerning. Remember, your deep love for your baby makes you vulnerable to advice that promises to turn out a better baby. Your love opens you to importuning from false prophets. Don’t blindly follow anyone else’s teachings. Instead, ask yourself:
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1. Does this advice fit with my intuition? Before accepting any doctrine of parenting, run it through your internal sensor. God gave you intelligence as well as love. Use both in raising your children.
2. Does the approach sound authoritarian? Beware of classes that offer quick fixes and boast that theirs is "God’s way." Complex parenting problems do not have easy answers. Shun rigid classes in favor of those that give you basic tools on which you can build your own parenting style.
3. Is the approach working for me? If not, drop it at once. If, for instance, the teachings of the class seem to be creating a distance between you and your child, they are not succeeding. Listen to your heart not your teacher, and act accordingly.
4. Is the Bible being twisted? Be wary of scriptural commandments about childrearing. Scripture can too often be used to fit a teacher’s biases instead of to instruct usefully.
5. What are the credentials of the "shepherds"? Do the teachers have practical or professional parenting experience? Do they seem to be both knowledgeable and sensitive? It’s okay to be a sheep if you have a wise shepherd. Christ provided such a model, and he had impeccable credentials
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