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1 Thessalonians 2:5-8 | Signposts Ministries

In his letter to the Thessalonians, Paul says, in reference to his conduct toward the church…

For we never came with words of flattery, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed— God is witness. Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children. So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God, but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.- 1Thess 2:5-8 (ESV)

In a way, the apostles were “parenting” the early Christian church.  What are the parallels in this verse between the apostles relationship to their “newborn” converts and our relationship with our children?

Ex.  Like the apostles, in our parenting, we should not be seeking glory from people.  Parenting isn’t about having a little person around to “worship” you.  It’s also not about portraying ourselves to other parents as a know-it-all.  Despite the fact we are in a position where it is possible to flaunt our authority and make stringent demands on our children or family- that’s not what nurturing parents should do.  Our concern should be the growth of our children, not the growth of our own egos.