What will be the result of single parent households?

[Fembot]

These are hard times. Times where families need churches even more. The problem is everyone's concern. Because when these children grow up in day care, on the streets and with gangs they don't care about anyone or anything. When the greatest influence in their lives comes from their peers and the entertainment industry, they become our problem. I'm not bashing them because, after all, I spent most of my childhood with one parent. I don't know where I would be without a church family. When I was younger, I'd get sad seeing little girls with their dads and really had a thing for older men-though I didn't pursue it. It was difficult to understand men growing up in a household of five women, but with the Holy Spirit in me, I never lost my faith in Christianity. Knowing truly good people who accept everyone and treat you with respect was what made me realize that I could trust again. Seeing the breakdown of the family structure today makes me very concerned because I know the battle these kids must fight-espc young boys who need to know what their role is in society. Their lack of guidance is what leads to this vicious cycle repeating. Because, as we all know, a large percentage of single parent homes include women who were abandoned.

I guess a large part of this problem may be that people don't get married before having children. Therefore, making it easier for the absentee parent to split. I also think the media looks down on families and promotes single lifestyles-i.e. Sex and the City.


But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 1 Timothy 5:8

 

[jasoncran]

These are hard times. Times where families need churches even more. The problem is everyone's concern. Because when these children grow up in day care, on the streets and with gangs they don't care about anyone or anything. When the greatest influence in their lives comes from their peers and the entertainment industry, they become our problem. I'm not bashing them because, after all, I spent most of my childhood with one parent. I don't know where I would be without a church family. When I was younger, I'd get sad seeing little girls with their dads and really had a thing for older men-though I didn't pursue it. It was difficult to understand men growing up in a household of five women, but with the Holy Spirit in me, I never lost my faith in Christianity. Knowing truly good people who accept everyone and treat you with respect was what made me realize that I could trust again. Seeing the breakdown of the family structure today makes me very concerned because I know the battle these kids must fight-espc young boys who need to know what their role is in society. Their lack of guidance is what leads to this vicious cycle repeating. Because, as we all know, a large percentage of single parent homes include women who were abandoned.

I guess a large part of this problem may be that people don't get married before having children. Therefore, making it easier for the absentee parent to split. I also think the media looks down on families and promotes single lifestyles-i.e. Sex and the City.


But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 1 Timothy 5:8

That verse in the kjv uses infidel and i think that's fitting

 

[Sparkey]

Malachi 4:5-6
Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse."

-The New King James Version

Being a single dad since 1 week before my youngest son was three (he's 22 now) has had a great affect on my life but I think that I had it easy when I look at what single mothers do both then and now. Parenting is pretty much a thankless job (while the job is being done) but I had the benefit of a supportive family (especially my three older sisters), a good job, understanding employer as well as help from the schools and community, not just the church.

I don't see the same level of recognition given to single moms though and I would take my hat off to them, being the stronger by far. It's Father's Day today and my voice is lifted to our Father for those women who deserve Father's Day cards for the job they are doing. They deserve more than that too.

Single Christian mom's are my heroes!

I know that I have the "heart of God" in this as well, demonstrated by the quote from the last verses of the Old Testament. Jesus' entire ministry was to reconcile Fathers and Children and this will be done, I am hopeful to see it in my lifetime - yet to those who stand in the gap as the work is performed, please accept my heartfelt praise for what is oftentimes a thankless job.

"And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers."

 

[Fembot]

HAPPY FATHERS DAY!!!

Sparrow-In your lifetime it will probably get alot worse considering how many children are being raised in the society we live in. My hats are off to you because you are a rare kind!

 

[JoJo]

Sparrowhawke, your post touched my heart. Happy Father's Day to you.

 

[kenken]

Well if you read history most childeren from the 14th to the 18 century lived in a single parent household so how did that work out?

 

[Sparkey]

Sparrowhawke, your post touched my heart. Happy Father's Day to you.

Thank you. It wasn't easy for me. Both my sons were diagnosed with "failure to thrive" within the first year of their birth. I had never heard of that term before and it wasn't the first time I put my face down in prayer before the Lord. My oldest (at 9 months) was only getting 60% nutrients from his food. My youngest had Gastroesophageal Reflux and cried almost constantly. He was operated on and a G-Tube was placed when he was 3 months old. I remember one Christmas season where his tube "popped out" 3 times just before the holiday and that meant three trips to the emergency room.

After mom left (one week before our youngest third birthday) things got worse, especially for my older son. His behavior became our main concern and when he was in school he was labeled "SBD", that is, "Severely Behaviorally Disabled". I remember one time when I was at work and things had gotten to be too much for me. I stood up and left my job, simply walked out and kept on walking. I crossed the parking lot, went through the adjacent parking lot (for the bus station) and increased my pace. It was then that I understood in my spirit that God's unconditional love would continue with me. That assurance slowed and then stopped me. I turned and returned to my life. It was a silent moment and I'm not sure that I really understand it but the Love of God (for me) was able to turn me when nothing else could.

I'm very sincere when I say that I have nothing but appreciation for single Christian mothers who continue in their ministry (what's a better word?) to their children. It is the work of God and within this are the seeds of healing for our land. It is also my prayer that Fathers stop and turn and return to the most important thing that God has given them to do. :amen

My youngest is 22 now, he has given me two grandsons. The G-Tube was removed when he was in 2nd grade. My older son is engaged to be married. The label "SBD" was changed during his senior year at high school to "Learning Disabled" something that the school psychiatrist stated never happens. In my private thoughts I blame God for the good things that happened with our family. He gave me a gift of faith and throughout the time I was a single dad, raising my sons, my eyes were turned to Him in hope for my children.

It is that same faith that keeps my eyes set on the message of Elijah, the friend of the Bridegroom, that same faith that highlights God's cry that certain hearts be turned.

Malachi Chapter 4

1 "For behold, the day is coming, Burning like an oven, And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up," Says the Lord of hosts, "That will leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But to you who fear My name The Sun of Righteousness shall arise With healing in His wings; And you shall go out And grow fat like stall-fed calves. 3 You shall trample the wicked, For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet On the day that I do this," Says the Lord of hosts.

4 "Remember the Law of Moses, My servant, Which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel, With the statutes and judgments. 5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. 6 And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse."

 

[Fembot]

:amen
Sparrow-what a beautiful testimony!
God Bless you

 

[JoJo]

Yes, a beautiful testimony of fatherhood and faith. Thank you for sharing! May God continue to bless you in your own "ministry" to your children and grandchildren. :yes

 

[lovely]

I believe that when our Father God is truly the head of the home families do well because they are set on pleasing Him. It doesn't matter if it's a couple, a single parent, grandparents, foster, etc. And, in some cases, He will pull people up out of that life and adopt Him as His children of promise so that they can start again raising Godly generations. I was raised by a single dad (My mom took my brothers and left me with him.), who was not a believer, but the Lord intervened in my life at a very young age and our Heavenly Father guided my path. When Shaun died God had already instilled in me a desire to please Him as a parent (with Shaun's help), and I was able to just lean into Him as a single mother with very little effort. God also provided my children a new dad, and they responded with thankfulness and they just absolutely adore him and honor him, because of the legacy of honoring God their dad (Shaun) lived out before them. (Especially our oldest son, who by God's grace set the tone.)

The sinful problems we have are because of satan's deceit, and our willful and presumptuous sin. If we followed God's plan for our families with fear and love for Him, and we promoted it within our children by just loving God's ways and truth above the world, then our lives will just naturally expose satan's machoistic/feministic/humanistic/etc. lies that are designed to devour us. I am not saying that we will never suffer, because God often calls us to suffer in trial, but what I am saying is that we are blessed when we want to please Him and apply His principals even if there are challenges and sorrow mixed in as well. When hard times come, as believers, we can be prepared to trust God's faithfulness, and walk in trust and obedience to Him no matter what the situation is, and even with thankful hearts. This is a light to those around us.

When I think about single parenthood, I think about my own children, and grandchildren. I want to lead my life in a way that examples Christ's own love and obedience to the Father before them, and inspires them to go forward in love obedience to God too. God has turned our hearts to them so that we may teach/train them in God's ways for the sake of His Kingdom. We want them to prepared for doing the work of marriage and children for the sake of pleasing the Lord, and so that they can look for that same faith, character, and preparation in their future spouse. They have to lay their lives down and deny themselves for their families, for the brethren, and for God. We started with prayer for them and their future spouse. I am am excited to know who God has prepared for them. I want to help them understand that they should seek to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit above any formula...God knows the hearts of others...and that they should remain grounded in the Word. Sometimes someone can look good on the outside, but not truly be able to weather the storms in faith, while others may come looking a little lest fit for the job, but really have a heart for God. I want what God wants for them.

We are discipling our children for Christ so that we can guide them in such a serious matter, so that we can pray for them and be honest and open with them about what we see in the people they are considering for marriage. Michael and I both come from homes where one of our parents left, but we are moving forward in Christ, and in a way that will hopefully, by faith, affect future generations and ultimately bring glory to God...it's His Kingdom we are building. In some ways God used my experience to prepare me to run a single parent home for a time (He's good like that), but overall He redeemed me from it and I turned from the sin and unbelief that I was raised in. This has not only changed my own life, but it will be a legacy that will touch generations by God's grace for His glory.

BTW, I was very encouraged reading the testimonies here.

The Lord Bless.

 

[Mark62]

In my private thoughts I blame God for the good things that happened with our family. He gave me a gift of faith and throughout the time I was a single dad, raising my sons, my eyes were turned to Him in hope for my children.

Thank you so much for your testominy and for being very honest. That takes courage.

People often find themselves in situations where it is easly to blame God and not to look at what is around and what rewards there are, despite unforseen circumstances they find themselves in. I read something once that put it kind of like this:

Everyone is talking about holidaying in Italy. Everyone is flying to Rome, the enjoy the chic European fashions, the art, the architecture, the history. You jump on the plane to enjoy the same things. The only problem is you find yourself in Holland. No told you the plane was being diverted. It's a case of all-off at Amsterdam Airport, this is your dream holiday, like it or not.

It's easy to get angry. :mad There is no 2,000 year old Coliseums, no Botticelli, no Michalangelo, No Pompeii. Why should you miss out on that and be stuck here?

But look around, there are lots of tulips, windmills, Delf pottery. There is Rembrandt, Ruebans, Van Gough. The sites (rewards) are different, but no less valuable. Possibly more so because they are different to everyone else's.
God Bless

 

[paisley]

Statistics show that children from single parent homes are more likely to divorce or live together than children from 2 parent homes so the problem quickly multiplies as we have seen in America and eventually the problem becomes so big that it effects all aspects of society. Crime goes up, morals go down, the ability to trust and love others goes down, purity and innocense goes down, sexual molestation and perversion goes up, poverty goes up, socialism goes up because single parents need the government to help support them and raise their children (they can`t do it on their own), child abuse goes up, homosexuality and gender confusion goes up, feminity goes down, promiscuity goes up and at earlier ages, I think it a major reason America has such an enormous drug problem, mental problems go up in my opinion, and the list could go on and on. I can`t think of any good that comes from single parent homes that were created through divorce or fornication. Widow/widowerhood is a completely different story although that too leaves a scar on a child to have a parent pass away when the child is young. I think God said He "hates divorce" because He knew what a devestating, widespread impact it would have on so many individual lives as well as society as a whole. It is a cancer. Murder generally does not spread like divorce. People are repelled by murder, but divorce just grows and grows until it almost consumes a society if it is not carefully controlled.
With that said, there are cases where a parent is left with the kids or has to escape with the kids for their lives, in these cases I believe if the parent clings to God, God will help that parent through and show mercy on that single parent home. And of course, if a single parent has become a single parent for selfish reasons, there will be problems but if the parent repents, I believe God is merciful and will forgive and help that home. But the best thing is for parents to tough out the hard times and stay together if possible because divorce really should be a last resort.

 

[Sparkey]

Statistics show that children from single parent homes are more likely to divorce or live together than children from 2 parent homes so the problem quickly multiplies as we have seen in America and eventually the problem becomes so big that it effects all aspects of society.

Statistics are interesting creatures, yes? They involve definitions and the term "Single Parent Family" typically means "families with children whose parents are divorced".

Single-parent households have been the subject of much discussion, debate, and study as their numbers have risen over the last 40 years. The two categories that have seen the most dramatic rise over the period shown and the two that account for the rise in single-parent households are divorced parents (rising 422%) and those who have never married (rising 3,026%). This explains, to some extent, why the subject of never-married parents dominates the debate about single-parent households, most of which are single-mother households (84%).

But what about broken families who "stay together for the kids"? If anything, it seems to me, that statistics are more skewed than researchers realize. The statistics quoted above are from the US Census Bureau. I'm certain they can not properly track the consequences resulting from Satan's attack on marriage and families but the information they present is devastating none-the-less.

What's the solution? I don't know, but my guess comes from the last verse of the Old Testament. Malachi is talking about the "Day of the Lord" and states, Mal 4:5 "Behold, I am sending you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of Jehovah. 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the sons, and the heart of the sons to their fathers, that I not come and strike the earth with utter destruction. " (Literal Translation)

Elijah is the friend of the Bridegroom, our Lord. 84% of never-married and single parent families are run by my heroes, Single Moms. The war is being lost as men have deserted their station. It didn't happen overnight though. My dad was born in 1911 and went through the Great Depression. His Dad worked 18 hour days to make a living. It can not come as much of a surprise to understand that the generation before mine thought "Bread-winner" was the most important aspect of manhood. It wasn't enough.

Dads and Husbands need to rethink their role in families and regain the lost ground. I take great hope in the fact that this seems to be on the top of the list (in God's View) when it comes to end time events. The Bridegroom's Best Man (Elijah) is given the task. It is my prayer that every man who hears this is stopped in his tracks as he is willingly struck by the arrow fired from our Heavenly Father within the last verses of the Old Testament. Shall we join our voices to the heart of Elijah and welcome Christ back to earth? Jesus restored mankind to his Father in heaven, shall we not follow him?

 

[jasoncran]

Statistics show that children from single parent homes are more likely to divorce or live together than children from 2 parent homes so the problem quickly multiplies as we have seen in America and eventually the problem becomes so big that it effects all aspects of society.

Statistics are interesting creatures, yes? They involve definitions and the term "Single Parent Family" typically means "families with children whose parents are divorced".

Single-parent households have been the subject of much discussion, debate, and study as their numbers have risen over the last 40 years. The two categories that have seen the most dramatic rise over the period shown and the two that account for the rise in single-parent households are divorced parents (rising 422%) and those who have never married (rising 3,026%). This explains, to some extent, why the subject of never-married parents dominates the debate about single-parent households, most of which are single-mother households (84%).

But what about broken families who "stay together for the kids"? If anything, it seems to me, that statistics are more skewed than researchers realize. The statistics quoted above are from the US Census Bureau. I'm certain they can not properly track the consequences resulting from Satan's attack on marriage and families but the information they present is devastating none-the-less.

What's the solution? I don't know, but my guess comes from the last verse of the Old Testament. Malachi is talking about the "Day of the Lord" and states, Mal 4:5 "Behold, I am sending you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of Jehovah. 6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the sons, and the heart of the sons to their fathers, that I not come and strike the earth with utter destruction. " (Literal Translation)

Elijah is the friend of the Bridegroom, our Lord. 84% of never-married and single parent families are run by my heroes, Single Moms. The war is being lost as men have deserted their station. It didn't happen overnight though. My dad was born in 1911 and went through the Great Depression. His Dad worked 18 hour days to make a living. It can not come as much of a surprise to understand that the generation before mine thought "Bread-winner" was the most important aspect of manhood. It wasn't enough.

Dads and Husbands need to rethink their role in families and regain the lost ground. I take great hope in the fact that this seems to be on the top of the list (in God's View) when it comes to end time events. The Bridegroom's Best Man (Elijah) is given the task. It is my prayer that every man who hears this is stopped in his tracks as he is willingly struck by the arrow fired from our Heavenly Father within the last verses of the Old Testament. Shall we join our voices to the heart of Elijah and welcome Christ back to earth? Jesus restored mankind to his Father in heaven, shall we not follow him?

While i think its best, and God's plans to have both parents involved in their children.Sometimes one or the other leaves,has habits,or passes away, and leaves the single parent. Which isn't their fault.