I just got a glimpse into the painful world of the single parent. Last Tuesday, Shelia flew to Atlanta to be near her dad during heart surgery (he's recovering nicely.) That left me back home to tend to the kids. All considered, it's gone well, but I am wiped out.
For context, our kids are 13 and 10 and in different school systems, and both are active in after-school activities, church happenings, and the like. On top of that, it just so happened to be a busy week at work, with me coming off a long weekend away and two new series pending. A stomach virus hit me like a brick on Tuesday and seriously dented my productivity. And on top of that, I picked this week to start a blog. (Me, idiot.)
I feel like I've spent the entire week hopping in and out of the car, herding backpacks, and generally being an impatient, emotional schmo. I wanted to take a moment and send out my love, respect and gratitude to my wife for all she does in our family, and my apologies to her for ever going out of town, ever. Every time I play single dad, I gain higher degrees of respect and admiration for those who parent alone. God bless each of you.
As pastors prepare messages and ministry leaders look ahead to the new year, let me encourage you find inventive ways to reach out and support single parents in your church. Whether it's teaching series focused on parenting, patience, or divorce, or more formal support systems to make life easy on parents (babysitting, tutoring, nutritious meals, single parent small groups, etc.) I believe this is a real ministry opportunity for any church that has at least one single mom or dad.
If your church is doing something unique for single parents in programming, support, or the arts, please share your ideas.
For context, our kids are 13 and 10 and in different school systems, and both are active in after-school activities, church happenings, and the like. On top of that, it just so happened to be a busy week at work, with me coming off a long weekend away and two new series pending. A stomach virus hit me like a brick on Tuesday and seriously dented my productivity. And on top of that, I picked this week to start a blog. (Me, idiot.)
I feel like I've spent the entire week hopping in and out of the car, herding backpacks, and generally being an impatient, emotional schmo. I wanted to take a moment and send out my love, respect and gratitude to my wife for all she does in our family, and my apologies to her for ever going out of town, ever. Every time I play single dad, I gain higher degrees of respect and admiration for those who parent alone. God bless each of you.
As pastors prepare messages and ministry leaders look ahead to the new year, let me encourage you find inventive ways to reach out and support single parents in your church. Whether it's teaching series focused on parenting, patience, or divorce, or more formal support systems to make life easy on parents (babysitting, tutoring, nutritious meals, single parent small groups, etc.) I believe this is a real ministry opportunity for any church that has at least one single mom or dad.
If your church is doing something unique for single parents in programming, support, or the arts, please share your ideas.
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