I wanted to encourage the Step Parent today I received a very sweet message from my Step Daughter on my Birthday last week (it made me cry) and I just wanted to share it. Not so that you would think that I am so wonderful, but to give hope and to encourage you that God’s Word is true and right and works in real peoples lives….even when we are not perfect..Step Parenting is an investment in the future.
My Step Daughter and I have not been real close over the years. Don’t get me wrong. We love each other, but we just have not been close. Mostly because she HAS a mother and she is close to her. Even as dysfunctional as it can be. A mother is a mother and we love them no matter what. You just have to accept that Step Moms, and for you Moms, rejoice in it.
When I married my husband and we became a blended family, I chose to love and treat my Step Children just as I would love and treat my own children… to the best of my ability. Sometimes being a Step Parent seems like a fruitless job. It seems that we are not really building into their lives and everything we may do to build them up can be torn down by the biological parent.
We must never give up being the Step Parent Jesus would have us be. He is at work in their lives and in ours. We must invest in our Step Children with an eye toward the future and in light of eternity.
Last year my Step Daughter went through some very hard times and my husband and I let her and her daughter come live with us for a few months (she was also in her third trimester of pregnancy) This was HUGE for all of us. Our whole family had to re-arrange our lives and living space to accommodate her. Not only that, she was not living in a way that was pleasing to us and we wondered if our younger kids should be exposed to so much “crisis”…. But the Lord really showed us that we were to do this.
We had to ask ourselves…Are we living out our faith? Or are we just talking about our faith?
This is the message she sent me for my birthday:
“I hope you know how much I love you! Seriously, you are an amazing woman. My dad is extremely blessed to be married to you. When things get tough for the kids and I, some encouraging words you have spoken to me pop up in my head…thanks for being an inspiration. God has a special way of exposing himself thru you. Your grace and kindness is very appreciated! I have a ton of respect for you. With that said, you definitely deserve to be spoiled rotten for your b-day:) Maybe we can celebrate this weekend?? “
“Love, ——-”
It touched my heart! Don’t give up Step Parents! We cannot live just for today! Each time we choose to love, it is a “Step” toward the future! I love this song and I hope that you will choose to practice this in your own family.
“Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal” Matthew 6:20
“The richest people on earth are those who invest their lives in heaven” quote from Our Daily Bread
Feel free to share an encouragement….or a heartache!
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Alyca says
How awesome. I am a fairly new step parent and my step daughter also has a mother of her own which, just like in your case, makes it a little harder to bond with her. The letter from your step daughter brought tears to my eyes, even if you sometimes doubt yourself, it is easy to see that you are doing a good job. Thanks for the encouragement, I hope that one day my step daughter (and daughter and son) have such nice things to say about me 🙂
Family Law West Palm Beach says
Hi Shari, thanks for being so honest and thoughtful in your post. It’s always good to learn that others are going through similar experiences with their step children. Great insights. Thank you.
Shari Lynne says
Hi there and thank you so much for stopping by! I’m so glad that this post was helpful…Step parenting is a really tough job for sure…but an investment in the future also 🙂 Blessings!