Here is an article designed to give you suggestions on how to help your child come back to the Church while still maintaining a healthy relationship.
As a parent of a child who has chosen to leave the Church, have you felt weighed down and yoked to a burden that seems to never sleep? Your sleepless nights may have been filled with concern, worry and sadness. You may question whether or not you will ever find rest, because let’s be honest, “rest” doesn’t really seem to be part of the job description for parenthood.
Here are some ways to best help your child (whether adult or teenager) return to Church.
1. Stop Blaming Yourself
You may feel that your child’s mistakes and decisions are a result of your parenting techniques. Stop these thoughts! They are not productive, healthy or useful. Allow yourself to be honest about your weakness and inadequacies and speedily repent, but do not dwell on what you could or should have done.
Trust in the atonement and the promise that “all that is unfair about life can be made right through the atonement of Jesus Christ.”
Each time you begin to sense negative thoughts turn your focus to the Savior.
Let His words comfort you when He said, “Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not” (Doctrine and Covenants 6:36).
When you start to have thoughts of self-blame, stop them and replace them by saying to yourself. “I cannot change the past; trust God and His plan.” Turning to God instead of to blame will change the way you look at the situation and will enable you to have hope in God’s plan.