I believe that one key goal of parenting is to let our children achieve independence. My interpretation of independence, is when my children is able to provide for herself physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally. Hmm....these four dimensions resonates well with the heart, soul, mind and strength dimensions in Mark 12:30!"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength"
Above: After much effort, Jan finally drinks milk from her own bottle by herself. Yet another step towards independence.
Soul - spiritual life. Establish her own personal relationship with God. Know how to continually deepen that relationship. Also develop her own value system.
Mind - thinking skills. Problem solving skills. Decision making skills.
Strength - physical well-being. This requires her to be able to earn her own living and know how to take care of her own health.
Wow....this is complex stuff, but writing them out helped me think through this topic more.
One last area is motivated by the 7 Habits book. Besides independence, the author also stressed the importance of interdependence--the ability to create synergies with people around us. So interdepedence should be another key goal of parenting!
Share you experience of how you had progressed towards these two goals!
