Parenting: The 14 Gospel PrinciplesSample

Identity

Parents, your children can’t give you life. They can’t give you sturdy hope. They can’t give you worth. They can’t give you peace of heart. They can’t give you right desires and motivation. They can’t give you strength to go on. They can’t give you confidence and courage in the middle of a trial. And they can’t give you that ultimate, heart-satisfying love that you long for.

I’m going to say it in a way that I hope will get your attention. It just never works to ask your children to be your own personal saviors. This is a burden they will never bear well, and it will introduce trouble and struggle into your relationship with them. Jesus is your life, and this frees you and your children from the burden of asking them to give you what your Savior has already given you.

—Paul David Tripp