This brief passage in 1 Thessalonians 2:7-12 is one of the most important statements in all of Scripture about spiritual parenting. Paul gave a compelling example for us. Paul describes his ministry among the Thessalonians by employing both parental figures side by side to describe his style of leadership. He considered the congregation his spiritual children and cared for them accordingly. When a person gets saved, that is wonderful, but then he desperately needs the tender loving care of someone who will assume the role of a spiritual parent for him or her. Helping people to grow in the Lord, as with growing children, takes time and requires patience. Sometimes it causes pain and priorities need to be set in our relationships. We don’t raise children overnight, we can’t raise them without growing pains for both parent and child alike, and we can’t impact them for Christ without spending quality time to see them built up in Christ. The Spiritual Parent's heart based on Paul’s double metaphor for an effective leadership — a loving mother who cares for her children and a gentle father who encourages, comforts, and urges his family flock to live lives worthy is important for a church leadeship today. The two sides of spiritual parenting that Paul describe in perfect balance: the tenderness of compassionate, motherly care alongside the fortitude and strength of fatherly love.
Be Blessed.
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