How Do I Respond To Others Who Criticize My Parenting Skills?who do not understand your child with autism, you should respond in a loving Christian manner.
It is so much more discouraging when fellow Christians hurt you with their comments than non-Christians. We believe that other Christians should be more understanding. They may be well-intentioned, but they still hurt you. They may especially tell you that your parenting skills are not up to par regarding your child with autism. They have an opinion about Christian discipline , too. I would like to discuss some concepts that will help you understand how to think about these situations regarding your parenting skills much better. First, we need to remember that Psalms 122:3-5 says “every child is a gift from God”. James 1:17 says that “God only gives good gifts.” Thus, every child is a GOOD gift from God - even your child with autism. We need to have confidence to believe that our child REALLY is a good gift just as he is. And we need to stop feeling guilty about his autism. Every parent that I have met who has a child with autism feels guilty at some point. Been there, done that! How others deal with these good gifts, ie autistic children, tells much about their own Christian perspective. Do they treat them with unconditional love? Do they accept these children like God accepts them. Matthew 25:40 says “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Your family, friends, and the church, should not judge you and your children with autism. Matthew 7:1 says “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.“ And Luke 6:37 similarly says "Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Seems rather clear that no one (including us!) should judge anyone else. Instead, they - and we - should show compassion and patience. And they should treat you and your child with autism like they would want to be treated per Matthew 7:12 .
Furthermore, Christians need to remember Matthew 7:4 which says, "How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?" Talking to others about all of these issues is very difficult. Hopefully, they will be receptive to a discussion done in a loving manner. But, we can not make them change. So, what else can we do? We can pray! I know this advice sounds like a platitude. However, prayer really is the only thing that we can control. We need to then allow God to perform His work within them. And God will also perform His work within us, too. So, we may not be able to prevent criticism about our parenting skills with our child with autism. But, we can pray for others, and we can set an example regarding others with disabilities. We will grow spiritually in the process. I also encourage you to investigate other questions and answers about the
Christian perspective of autism.
Return HOME
|
