My daughter’s godparent is an avid “Facebook-er” and since I’m not, I’ve asked him to keep an eye on what my kids post on their walls. Well, just a few days ago my daughter put some summertime fun pictures of herself in a bathing suit on Facebook—an absolute no-no in our house, no matter how innocent the intention. He immediately messaged her and said, “It’s hard to catch that scripture you posted with all that skin showing.” Of course, she wasn’t too pleased with him, but she took the pictures down. And I never had to say a thing.
Where parenting is concerned, Mark and I have incorporated the old adage “it takes a village (albeit a trustworthy one) to raise a child.” I adopted it from one of my favorite bible stories, in the book of Nehemiah.
My quick version is this: Nehemiah goes back to his people in Jerusalem to help rebuild the walls and city that had been destroyed by its enemies. The people are tired from fighting, overwhelmed with the task at hand, and scared—all the while, their enemies were crouched just outside the walls, regrouping to attack. Sound familiar? Nehemiah encouraged and prayed for the people; then he called them to immediate action. Side by side, the families worked for years, shield and sword always at the ready. One brick at a time, they rebuilt the wall.
Here’s the cool part: each family was responsible for inspecting the work that of the other families to the right and the left of them. This was done in order to ensure there wasn’t a gap or weak spot in the wall. A weak spot is all the enemy would need to infiltrate and destroy their people again.
So, do you have a friend, or family member (better yet, several) who share your same values, incorporate similar discipline styles and strive for similar goals as you? The world has plenty of eyes on your kids. It uses every type of media – from simple cereal advertisements to social networking juggernauts, like Facebook to influence your kids. How many eyes do you have on them? For our family, Mark’s and mine weren’t enough. We made (and still make) sure that we keep lots of trustworthy eyes on our weak spots. We stay accountable to the families that surround us, those who are also committed to protecting their families. Oh, and I still carry my sword and shield, just in case I need to fight.
