New Book Dishes Out Advice Parents Have Long Requested
Rev. Kim Meyers offers a fresh take on rearing children of all ages
Rev. Kim Meyers often gets told, “You should write a book!” She always shrugged it off until a year ago when a friend stopped her and said, “Seriously, we come to you for all of our parenting questions. You really should write a book.”
The idea wouldn’t leave Meyers alone and during the pandemic she sat down to write the parenting resource she always wished she had. She speaks of the experience as a holy thing that God had a hand in every step of the way.
Her new book, Parenting With Perspective, is available for pre-orders and will be published in October. A seasoned teacher of parenting classes, a mom to two teenaged sons and a deacon at St. Andrew UMC in Plano, Rev. Meyers said she considered what’s not out there and sought to fill the gap.
“I just need a friend that I can talk to about parenting and tell me it’s going to be ok,” Rev. Meyers said. “This book is not a parenting how-to but a way to gain perspective – that it’s going to be ok.”
The book begins with a focus on the parent, unlike many parenting resources that start with the child. Rev. Meyers said she wanted to say all the things she wished people would say about parenting, like you’re going to mess up but it’s going to be ok.
“In our digital world, we don’t post about when we forget to pick up our kid but all of us have done it,” she said. “So, just saying the things no one says about us as parents was important to me.”
The book also includes perspectives from a wide spectrum of parents who have toddlers all the way up to parents of grown children.
“Perspective is a word that really means a lot to me,” Rev. Meyers said. “Parenting under pressure is what we were doing during COVID. But, if we can parent with perspective, it can make the hard days seem less hard.”
Each chapter begins with scripture to ground the whole thing and ends with a prayer written by a colleague or friend. Rev. Meyers is working on a Bible study companion to the book that can be used in small groups and Sunday School classes. She is excited to share the fruits of this journey with churches, parenting groups and school groups.
Rev. Meyers can tailor her material to the needs of any group and offers one-time or multi-sessions. She is looking forward to sharing this material.
“I believe this book is bigger than me,” she said. “The words came with ease, and I believe this book is dripping in the Holy Spirit. These are not my words alone. It’s rooted in grace and has an energy that’s beyond me. And that’s my prayer for it. Families are so tired and anxious and my prayer for this is that this book can heal and help us move on through humor and hope. Because, you gotta laugh.”
Published: Wednesday, August 4, 2021