“Only a stay-at-home mom” – yeah, right
“Oh, you’re a stay-at-home mom! So you’re not working!”
I am loving this German vacuum cleaner commercial where a stay-at-home mum, when asked about her profession, answers: “I am running a very successful small family business.”
I am really wondering who has, at some point in time, determined that you are not really “working” when you are not making money. I hardly know of anyone who works harder than a young mother, especially one who has more than one child. And since when has putting stamps on documents been more valuable than shaping people?
But I don’t really mean to have a political discussion here. I have a rather different request instead:
I am a mother of 3 children of 14, 18, and 20 years of age. I wilfully decided to stay at home with my children when I could have made a lot of money on the job market with my professional skills and qualifications. I did my Abitur with a 1.0 grade (the best grade attainable in Germany) and then went on to study geography. During my studies I received a scholarship from the “Studienstiftung des Deutschen Volkes” (German National Academic Foundation) – which is usually a door-opener to a great career.
When I had my first child, however, I realized two things:
1. My children needed a safe home.
2. My children needed good children ministries at church.
And this was far more world-changing than making six figures a year.
With the help of some other brilliant women, I was able to build a ministry that gave my children the feeling that the church of God was their home. My children now all have a deep and resilient relationship with Jesus. They are engaged in various church ministries themselves, and they have already established services, ministries, and Christian groups on their own, such as youth prayer groups, youth conferences, Christian music events, etc.
But this doesn’t happen by itself.
I often get to hear: “My children have to decide for themselves.”
No argument here. And yet – the secular World has no such qualms when it comes to making clear what it thinks right or wrong. So, what about us Christians?
As parents, we should make sure that our children get to know Jesus in a vivid way. For this to happen, the children need a good children’s ministry at church. And that’s exactly why we parents are the best qualified.
The 3 striking arguments for the development of children’s ministry:
1. We love our children.
We would do/invest a lot for them to get to know Jesus.
2. We know our children.
We know what they like and what appeals to them. We know their problems and their worries. We can work in a child-oriented way.
3. If not us – who else?
We should not wait until the pastor or priest finds a creative approach. He has enough on his plate already. So we should not waste time, but get started.
There is hardly a greater opportunity for us to leave traces in history! Our responsibility is a gift!
