Dear Parents,

Got siblings? If yes, then you know the incredible joy, fun and rich color they add to your family, as well as the deep pain and chaos they can stir up. I believe God put us in families with siblings so that we have a built- in training center with the people who know and love us the most.

No one has to tell a parent that siblings will have conflict. It is inevitable. God has given us provision for how to raise and train our children. The Word is our guide and we should be teaching it to our children in bite-size teachable lessons. One of the biggest shifts in my parenting was when I stopped saying, “No”, “No”,

“NO!”, “Stop please”, “Please stop”, ‘STOP IT” and moved into parenting the heart. If it was in the Word, then it needed to be modeled in our home. If it was in the Word, then it needed to be deposited into their heart. If it was in the Word, then it needed to come out of my mouth.

Nothing will open doors more for your child than having good character and nothing serves as a better training area than their relationships with their siblings.

When my children lament about how annoying or frustrating their sibling is being, I lovingly remind them that God is helping prepare them to have the best marriage, lasting friendships and rich connections with others. It is costing them something now, but as they grow and learn these valuable relational skills they will reap the fruit for a life time.

Let’s steward deeper sibling connections and SOAR higher this month.