Something I tell the leaders of our NextGen Ministries often is that practical leadership consists of three things:
- Being Present,
- Showing Care, and
- Creating Memories!
Parents, as I was praying for you this month, I want to encourage you that if you too will focus on doing these three things with your students, your relationship with them will grow!
Being Present
“Being present” seems so simple—yet it is something that in this day and age we have to work hard to do! Students today spend hours on social media, posting content, making videos, keeping up with trends—all so they can be noticed. When you are with your kids, make it a habit to truly be present. I know it’s hard to put the phones down, but even if it is just for one hour every day, make a rule that all phones get put away and on silent. They may hate it at first, but over time your family may learn to love that hour or two of the day when, in between bites at dinner, homework assignments, or even commercials of a show you enjoy watching as a family, you have conversation instead of checking your phones! Being present… it’s simple, yet so powerful!
Showing Care
Showing care to your children seems like a given, but if we aren’t careful, we can care for our children’s physical needs and unintentionally neglect to care for their emotional needs! One of the biggest ways I see students today struggling is emotionally. Anxiety and depression are at all-time highs and affecting students at younger and younger ages. As parents it is easy to think this would never affect our kids, but as your student’s pastor, I’m begging you not to make that assumption! Don’t be overwhelmed by the thought of having such a heavy conversation with your student. Many students have it in their heads that their parents/caregivers will be upset with them if they say they are struggling with anxiety, depression, or thoughts of harming themselves. Something simple you can start doing right now is telling your student on a consistent basis, “You can always tell me if you are struggling with anxiety or depression. I will never get mad at you for that!”
Creating Memories
Lastly, I encourage you to work to create memories with your students! It doesn’t have to be big vacations or costly trips. It can be something as simple as “Pizza Night” every Sunday when your children can each invite a friend over! I’d encourage you to create spiritual memories as well. Taking communion in your home once a month, picking a night of the week to all share something exciting that happened and something tough they want prayer for, or serving regularly at community outreaches as a family are just a few ideas!
God hand-picked YOU to be there for them in every season, and with the help of your church family and Jesus, this can be the greatest season yet!
