180: Stop Carrying Other People's Backpacks

This is episode 180 of Let’s Parent on Purpose and I’m going to use this episode to try to convince you to stop carrying other people’s backpacks. Are you confused? Stick around and you might just learn one of the most liberating principles that I’ve ever taken into my life.

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Show Highlights

Throughout our lives, we use backpacks in school, when we travel, even as a mobile office. Our backpacks carry everything that is important for our day and they can get quite full and heavy.

Your own backpack can get heavy enough on its own. If you start carrying someone else’s too, you could get overwhelmed.

At every part of our life, we all have a load that we are carrying. It could be as small as having proper manners or cleaning your room when you are young. As you get older, the responsibilities grow with you. That’s our individual “backpack.”

Moms often end up carrying other family members’ load when it comes to doing chores just to make sure things get done. But, remember that if you are constantly bailing them out, you aren’t doing them any favors.

If you continually intervene on your kids financial situation, schoolwork, and other aspects of their lifestyle, they will not develop in themselves a sense of responsibility and capability for carry their own load.

However, the Bible also says “bear one another’s burdens.” Think of burdens as boulders. It’s possible for you to pick up a boulder on your own and carry it a little ways, but it’s not possible for you to sustain carrying it for an extended period of time.

In each of our lives, boulders are going to come. We need help to carry these. If someone can take things out of your backpack, they can help you bear the burden a little bit. There are small things that we can do to make their loads a bit lighter, without carry their backpacks for them.

Resources Mentioned

• Things for Thursday and free e-book: Text THINGS to 66866