Connecting With the Heart of Your Childნიმუში

I will never forget a documentary about Mother Teresa that forever touched my heart. She was walking through her orphanage in Calcutta, India, where she ministered to the poor and desperate. "This little one might make it. There is life in her eyes," she said as she picked up a tiny baby from a crib.

The babies were clean, dressed, and fed after having been rescued from the streets where they were left to die. Yet very few of them survived. Very few survived being unwanted. The need to be wanted, loved, and touched is as vital to our well-being as food and shelter. We have a deep need to be accepted by someone—specifically our mothers.

God created mothers to be the original primary caregivers through breast-feeding. While breast-feeding is about naturally providing essential nutrition for babies, it is also the primary pathway for mother and child attachment. Whether you breast-feed or bottle-feed, it is the foundational acceptance and care of the baby from the mother that allows a child to thrive.

Every day, your children need to know that they are accepted and wanted. They want to be wanted by their mom! God designed their hearts to yearn for this type of unconditional love and acceptance from you.

Mother Teresa said, "We have not cured the disease of being unwanted." At the heart of secure attachment is acceptance - the daily experience of being genuinely wanted and cherished.

Reflection Question: How can you communicate to your child today that they are deeply wanted and accepted?