A covenant view at parenting brings to light the importance of knowing why our children are born to us. The purpose of a family is not to merely welcome a child in our home and wish we keep them fed, safe and taken care of until they turn 18 or when we feel like releasing them into the world.

One of our pastors preached a sermon about covenant with reference to an article about the difference between contracts and covenants. The sermon brought me back to the day I surrendered my life to Christ, the day I got married to Hubby and the day we dedicated each of our three girls to God. Each event revealed to me that I was entering into covenant first with God for my salvation, then with God and Hubby for my marriage, and with God and Hubby and each of our daughter for my family.

A covenant view at parenting reminds us why contracts and covenants are not the same things. Here are some fundamental differences according to UpCounsel:

• While a contract is legally binding, a covenant is a spiritual agreement.
• A contract is an agreement between parties while a covenant is a pledge.
• A contract is an agreement you can break while a covenant is a perpetual promise.
• You seal a covenant while you sign a contract.
• A contract is a mutually beneficial relationship while a covenant is something you fulfill.
• A contract exchanges one good for another, while a covenant is giving oneself to the other.
• You can opt out of a contract while a covenant is about having the strengths to hold up your part of the promise.
• One can stop paying in a contract when one party is not fulling their part in a deal. However, in a covenant, the party not getting their needs me supports the failing party so that they can meet their obligations.

A covenant view at parenting is a covenant we enter into with God and our children to train them in the way they should go as God use our parenting journey to train us in the way we should grow. We enter into parenting covenant as a spiritual agreement with God. Kingdom parenting calls us into a perpetual promise to care for our children spiritually, mentally, physically, emotionally and financially, even when our children miss the mark, just like God’s faithfulness is a secure fortress in our lives.

A covenant view at parenting is founded on our vows to see this parenting journey through with God’s help and strength because children will make choices sometimes that lead them in a path not ordained by God but children also need to know that they can always come home. Home is not just a physical place but where the heart and arms of parents make our children feel safe and loved.

When we brought our first born home, we thought we were prepared and ready for whatever this parenting journey threw at us but this particular night, Babygirl was congested and we realized quickly that night how a baby’s comfort doesn’t take into account your lack of sleep or the fact that you have to be at work the next morning.

Hubby and I had to put our marriage covenant in high gear which taught us the meaning of power in unity and tag teaming. When Hubby was holding her in his arms to make Babygirl comfortable enough to fall asleep, I did my part to hold them both in prayer on my knees. We learned to extend grace to each other and to this precious little baby who just wanted wanted a good night sleep through the sniffles.

A covenant view at parenting is a trust-based promise that relies on trusting God to see us as CEOs of our home. Kingdom parents are Chosen, Empowered, and Ordained to handle any parenting challenge that comes their way. Thank be to God that He never fails in showing us time and time again that He will never leave us nor forsake once we put our trust in Him. The question is can He trust us to fulfill the spiritual agreement we made before Him on behalf of our children?

WELLthy Life NODte: “The parenting journey should be viewed through the lens of covenant and not of convenience.” -Nathalie O’Donald