Marriage or Parenting

I recently read an article about a poll question discussing the importance of marriage and parenting. The question was posed which was more important: to be successful in your marriage or to be a good parent. More people responded that they felt it was more important to be a good parent. I found it interesting that the topics were looked at as if they were not related. Some people commented that if you are a bad parent, you are messing up another person’s life, so that is why parenting is more important. I would argue that the marriage relationship is the heart of the family, and that if it is a priority, then everything else within the family will benefit, particularly parenting. A good marriage should have love, respect, and trust. If a child is growing up in a home where these values are evident, that is going to mold the person that they become. The marriage relationship is the first and primary example of people interacting that a child sees if that interaction is good and positive that will impact his relationships with other people. I’m not suggesting that all people who have great marriages are amazing parents. I also do not mean that if you are a single parent or in a bad relationship, that you can’t be a good parent. However, I do believe that marriage and parenting go together, and that having a successful marriage relationship is certainly a blessing to your children and your entire family. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh. Genesis 2:24 Originally posted October 2011