thoughts on parenting

I have been reading an amazing book called 'Grace Based Parenting' by Dr. Tim Kimmel. As I am learning how to parent a toddler and reach his heart with the love of Christ, I am learning so much about my own personal relationship and view of God. This book guides parents to first meet their own need for love, purpose, and hope in God alone; then we as parents are able to meet those needs in our children through God. Here is an excerpt that really spoke to me about the need to raise our children as the light of Christ:

"The real test of a parenting model is how well equipped the children are to move into adulthood as vital members of the human race. Notice I didn't say, 'as vital members of the Christian community.' We need to have kids that can be sent off to the most hostile universities, toil in the greediest work environments, and raise their families in the most hedonistic communities and yet not be the least bit intimidated by their surroundings. Furthermore, they need to be engaged in the lives of people in their culture, gracefully representing Christ's love inside these desperate surroundings.
God left our families in communities to serve as porch lights, if you will, for the lost people around us. We are to be the steady glow that helps them find their way out of the darkness. When families are committed to being this light, they are inclined to live more intimately with Christ. They pray more, they study their Bibles more, they care for one another more, they reach out to their neighbors more. Somewhere in all the talk about raising kids, we moved away from this as a priority in our parenting."