The 10 Commandments for Parents

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The 10 Commandments for Parents: No Other Gods
"There is a teaching that pervades Christianity that essentially teaches that children will never learn to follow God unless they first see their parents as gods.  Under this reasoning, children are expected to obey without question.  Worship Respect for parents is paramount, and even mere thoughts that might be out of line are considered defiance."

The 10 Commandments for Parents: No Graven Image
"Our society has created a graven image of the perfect baby/child.  A *good* baby or child is one that is convenient.  Who doesn't bother you or take away attention from more important matters (the more important matters being the parent's interests, free time, and above all, sleep).  Who only garners attention for cuteness and excelling in academics and athletics.  Who is quiet and plays independently, but is still socially sophisticated."

The 10 Commandments for Parents: Taking His Name in Vain
"Taking God's name in vain, in my mind, is far deeper than the words we exclaim in intense moments.  The real heart of this commandment is about how we live.  If we are called by His name, we need to act like Jesus would.  We color our children's perception of God, and the weight of that responsibility leaves me gasping some days."

The 10 Commandments for Parents: Remember the Sabbath
"For all of you beautiful moms and dads who are bleary eyed from being up most of the night with a sick tiny one, who are still feeling guilty over the grouchy words you snapped off earlier this evening, who are fighting to juggle the needs of your family and jobs and home and never-ending laundry, who have pored over so many contradictory articles about education/vaccination/insert topic that your thoughts are chasing each other's tails like tireless puppies, who are sinking into a quicksand of loneliness because your spouse doesn't understand, who are afraid that you just aren't enough:  Rest.  Enter into the Sabbath."

The 10 Commandments for Parents: Honor Your Father and Your Mother
"I wholeheartedly believe that the Bible commands that children obey and honor their parents.  But I also believe that we as parents must be exceedingly careful with this commandment for two reasons:  it is a commandment to children, not to parents, and our perception of obedience is often skewed."

The 10 Commandments for Parents: Thou Shall Not Kill
"I think that there are two ways of killing kids that we must watch out for: killing their individuality (they are not meant to be the same people we are, or the same as anyone else) and poisoning their souls with shame."

The 10 Commandments for Parents: Forsaking All Others
"I believe that adultery is about more than sex--it is about breaking covenant and giving someone else a place that doesn't belong to them.  It is choosing someone else over your spouse.  In that context, there are some important parallels with parenting. The parents that I know love their children dearly and value their relationships with their kids. Yet it is so easy fall into the temptation of allowing our desire to please other adults to edge out our covenant to our kids. "