As parents, many things can make family life more difficult. So many of our challenges revolve around the normal pace of life, where we’re all busy and just trying to get to the next thing. As we move through it all, we have to deal with the inevitable conflicts that come up along the way. We have conflicts with friends, co-workers, people we run into as we move through life, and yes, we have conflicts in our family. If we’re honest, sometimes we handle conflict well, and sometimes we do not. As sinful people who often want things a certain way or see things through a certain lens, we don’t always respond well. Couple that with leading little people who have big emotions and are still learning about the world, and you have a recipe for some major issues. This month, we want to help you reflect on how you handle conflict when it comes your way, particularly at home. How we handle conflict with our spouse and our kids will have a tremendous impact on so many parts of family life and our future together. If we can learn to handle disagreements well, we have a much better chance of having the deep, loving relationships we all truly crave.

In this month’s Parenting Class, we talk about something that is simple but incredibly important as we lead our kids. We talk about how to stay calm in the midst of conflict. It’s so easy and natural to get angry, loud, and demanding when we disagree with our spouse or kids, but learning to slow down and de-escalate the moment is so important. When we find ourselves in conflict, we actually have a choice in how we will handle the situation, and how we choose to respond really matters when it comes to building a culture in our home. We want to live out the wisdom we see in James 1:19, where we are told to be “quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry.” Our kids are always watching how their parents handle stress, conflict, and disappointment. When parents are solid and steady, it can show kids what a life of faith looks like in the real world.

We hope you’ve enjoyed the content on this site, but please do not share or post this material. If you’re interested in more information, please contact your organization or church leader.