Affirmation as Parent Ministry

When The Five Love Languages was all the rage, I bought a copy, thinking it would be a great book for my husband and I to read together.

True confession: We never did.

A decade later I can tell you – even without ever having read the book – that words of affirmation are my love language.

I am a words person. I love to read and write so the fastest way to my heart is through words – especially written words.

Since words of affirmation are my love language, I naturally assume they’re also everyone else’s love language. As a result, I frequently take time to send my students’ encouragement notes – handwritten notes I mail to their houses that in some way affirm who they are.

This comes naturally to me; It’s something I view as an important part of my job. What comes far less naturally is encouraging and affirming the parents of my students.

The irony is that the longer I’ve been in youth ministry, the more I’ve realized that in truth, parents need affirmation far more than their teens.

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