Tonight was the first night of a new ministry program called teen mom choices offered through Stillwaters here in Kaufman. God led me to the ministry of teen moms seven years ago. I was the leader of teen mops and we met with our teen moms on a weekly basis every week until I delivered Luke. I stepped out of the role to take some time off. I felt that I needed to focus on my children and family. Now God has told me it is time to get active with teen moms again. I had to pray really hard for this calling this time around. I get so attached to the young moms and they become such a big part of my life that I wasn't sure I was ready to step into this role again just yet. I had wanted to wait until my children were completely grown or maybe not go this direction of ministry again. Working with teenagers is a challenge in and of itself but throw in a baby and this can create some speed bumps. But of course my plans are not what God has planned for my life. I had to learn a long time ago that when I'm called to do something I need to go with it and not fight it.
We had five young moms at the first meeting tonight. I was so blessed meeting them. These young women are so passionate about being moms and are eager to learn how to be a mom. That is my passion too, to teach them how to be the best mom they can be. They may have made a mistake that led to this path but I feel that one of my roles on this earth is to teach them that even though the decisions they made in the past impacted their future, it doesn't have to destroy them. They can be the best mom to their child if they so desire. And all of the girls that have gone through this type of program have made that decision. They honestly want to learn how to be good moms. I had the fortune with the last group of girls to witness several of them be baptised. I cried each time.
This time around I will be leading some workshops several times a month. Each one of the girls has a mentor mom that is partnered up with them one on one. What a wonderful idea! This helps the teen mom to bond with an experienced mom for help, advise, etc. Even though these girls have their own moms, this is another support system for them to be successful. I am the product of two teen parents. And I honestly believe that if a program of this type could have been around for my mom things may have been different for her. She had no support system in place besides her mom. If a program like this could have taken her under their wing, imagine the difference it could have made for her when she struggled to learn how to be a mom. Even though I turned out pretty decent (: there are many kids from teen parents that do not. Perfect example, studies have shown that a huge majority of folks in prison were born to teen parents. Their lack of knowledge and skills of parenting tend to show through the children they raise. I'm not saying all teen parents don't know what they are doing but there are a huge number of them that have no idea on raising a child. Programs like teen mom choices and teen mops take teen moms and help to shape them and mold them into responsible parents.
Wrapping this up, I feel extremely blessed to be a part of this new endeavor. Ketra and Melissa, the ladies in charge of setting up the program, have worked countless hours getting this program off the ground here and I am blessed beyond words in my awe of them. They are wonderful Godly women that I am proud to know! And I'm very thankful to have them as a support for my life too!
No comments:
Post a Comment