What Am I Doing Wrong?
What Am I Doing Wrong?
Don’t stir up anger in your children, but bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. (Eph. 6:4)
“I don’t know what I’m doing wrong,” Cindy said. She sat beside Anita, grateful that nobody else had arrived for Bible study yet. “Whenever I ask Todd’s kids to do something or try to correct them, they react like I’m the evil stepmother from a bad fairy tale. Especially Julia. It seems like all we do is fight.”
“Sounds like a rerun of my experience with Mike’s daughter.”
“But you two act like best friends.” Cindy tried to imagine Anita and eighteen-year-old Lisa not getting along.
“What we have took work. Looking back, I was trying too hard, and she was at a difficult age—thirteen. Someone suggested we find ways to get to know each other. I also committed to pray for Lisa daily. The combination helped. I discovered she was a good kid, and she saw that I truly loved her. We still have our moments. But hey, she’s a teenager. We’re supposed to have moments.”
Cindy thought about that. Maybe I’m trying too hard. God, I want to have a good relationship with Todd’s kids. Show me how.
Movies and fairy tales give stepparents a bad reputation. How difficult it must be to adjust to marriage while also learning to parent children you didn’t have the advantage of knowing and raising from infancy. If you are a stepparent, know that God put you where you are for a purpose and wants you to have healthy relationships. Take some time to seek His wisdom and learn from those who have been there and seen success. If you know a woman in this situation, pray today for how you might support and encourage her as she helps raise the children who came with her husband.