What Do I Do With Worry? A Devotional for ParentsSample

DAY 6: Comforting Our Kids

Children have all kinds of emotions. Just as they come into the world not understanding the difference between the color blue and red, they don’t know the difference between sad and mad, worried and embarrassed. What makes it more complicated is a child doesn’t feel red in her body, but she does feel anger. 

Think of the ways you react when you feel anger, or how your body reacts when you feel anxious. Even as adults, how often do we struggle with managing our own emotions? These emotions are even more difficult to navigate for children and teenagers because their prefrontal cortex—the part of the brain responsible for emotion regulation and self-control—isn’t even developed yet.

To calm a child’s overwhelmed brain, we have to be willing to enter his or her emotional world. God often comforts kids through those who love them and are close to them. We can share God’s love with our kids by creating plenty of emotional space for them—a space for them to feel safe, to calm their overwhelmed minds, and to label everything they’re feeling.