Discover a powerful lesson on godly parenting, why you must first be spiritually nourished before you can effectively nourish your children. Learn how your walk with God shapes the faith of your child.
I once visited a friend, and while I was in her house, her baby began to cry. At that moment, she was in the kitchen preparing food for herself.Out of concern, I asked, “Won’t you go and attend to your baby first?”
But she said something I didn’t understand at first:
“I have to eat first before I feed my baby.”
I kept reminding her because the baby was still crying, but she calmly replied,
“I’m not wicked to mty baby. I’m only trying to help myself, because without eating, I cannot feed my baby. The milk won’t come out if I haven’t eaten.”
That statement stayed with me. It taught me a big lesson.
Later, as I reflected, I realized something profound — God’s Word is also food.
The Bible says,
“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)
In the same way, a parent must be nourished with the Word of God before they can nourish their child spiritually.
You cannot give what you don’t have.
You must feed yourself before you can feed your child.
So the big question is: What have you been feeding on?
Because what you feed on determines what your child will eventually feed on.
The Bible says,
“Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly.” (Colossians 3:16)
That means, as parents, we must let God’s Word fill our hearts daily. Parenting begins with personal growth.
Filling up a child is vital, but it starts with a parent who takes responsibility to be word-loaded.
Even if you’re not perfect or naturally godly, start somewhere. Let your children see you reading your Bible, praying, or speaking faith.
Even if it feels like you’re pretending at first, keep doing it. Because what they see, they will imitate.
A Personal Example
I remember when I was younger, my mom would pray almost every night. You’d see her burning the midnight candle, praying earnestly in the quiet hours. She never told me to do that. She never sat me down to instruct me, saying, “You have to pray.”
But guess what? I grew up loving it. I grew up doing what I saw her do.
Just like my father too, he loved reading the Bible quietly at night, using a small table lamp. He didn’t command me to do the same, but I found myself following in his footsteps.
They both fed themselves with the Word, and because of that, it was easy for me to be nourished.
They gave me what they already had, a living example of faith.
And that’s what parenting is all about.
That’s what godly parenting truly means.
Children learn more by what they see than by what they hear.
When parents feed on the Word, their children will naturally grow hungry for it too.
So remember:
- A nourished parent raises a nourished child.
- A Word-filled heart produces a Word-filled home.
Feed yourself, so you can feed your child.
Remain Ever Blessed.
