Hands-On Motherhood
1. According to CNN article (5-07), "The typical [stay at home] mother puts in a 92-hour work week… and works at least 10 jobs. In order of hours spent on them per week, these are: housekeeper, day-care center teacher, cook, computer operator, laundry machine operator, janitor, facilities manager, van driver, chief executive officer and psychologist. By figuring out the median salaries for each position, and calculating the average number of hours worked at each, the firm came up with [an equivalent salary of] $138,095 -- three percent higher than last year’s results."
2. On the other hand, some mothers abuse or neglect their children.
3. And then there is a difference between mothers who mean well and mothers who do what is in the best interest of their children.
Main Idea: Every mother is different and every situation is different; but successful moms are hands-on moms.
I. There Are Many TYPES of Mothers
A. Achsah: A SHALLOW Materialistic Mother (Judges 1:12-15)
Harvard professor Elizabeth Schor writes, ""American consumers are often not conscious of being motivated by social status and are far more likely to attribute such motives to others than to themselves. We live with high levels of psychological denial about the connection between our buying habits and the social statements they make."
B. Abi: A Mother With An Evil Husband and A GODLY Son (2 Kings 18:1-3)
King Josiah likewise followed the ungodly Amon, but he had a good "role model" in the high priest Hilkiah.
Mom, if your husband is an unbeliever or a wish-washy Christian, one important think to do is to look for other men to serve as role models… boys need to see a masculine Christianity or they will consider Christianity for women and children…
We are fortunate to have a masculine church where boys can see dads who lead their homes and serve as the church’s leaders…
C. Isaiah’s Wife: A Godly TEAM of Parents (Isaiah 8:1-4)
Note that Isaiah’s wife is not mentioned by name, but she was a prophetess…
They followed God’s will in naming their child -- and probably His will for their lives in general…this is the ideal…but even the ideal can get bumpy…
II. What Makes A HANDS ON Parent?
"Most of the [thousands of] parents we’ve interviewed in recent years have a survival-based philosophy rather than a goal-oriented philosophy" (Barna, Revolutionary Parenting, p. 38).
What sort of young adults do we want to produce?
A. They realize their responsibility to train their own children in SPIRITUAL and MORAL matters (Deut. 6:4-9)
"…churches alone do not and cannot have much influence on children. In fact, the greatest influence a church may have in affecting children is by impacting their parents"
(Barna, Revolutionary Parenting, p.xvii).
B. There is no DOUBT who is boss (Eph.6:1-2)
C. Parents back off when NECESSARY (Eph. 6:4)
D. Aiming to produce mature CHRISTIANS rather than pleasing their child (Hebrews 12:9-11)
E. They oversee who their children’s FRIENDS are (I Cor. 15:53)
F. They oversee what their kids WATCH (Psalm 101:3)
G. More concerned that kids are KIND to peers than excel above them (I Cor. 13)
"…character does not magically emerge without intentional effort…who you are matters a lot more than what you accomplish…" (p. 47).
Typical parents struggle to "know when they need to devote more time and energy to their children…"
Revolutionary Parents (who produce Spiritual Champions) struggle with when to back off so they do not become the "overbearing intruder."
In other words, Revolutionary Parents are hands on and struggle with when to be "hands off," whereas typical parents are "hands off" and struggle with when to be "hands on."
Quotations from George Barna’s Book, Revolutionary Parenting, Barna (Tyndale), 2007.
Every mother is different and every situation is different; but successful moms are hands-on moms.
