How To Create A Solo Family Mission Statement

Life as a single parent can often feel like we are just maintaining safety and stability with little intentional vision or direction for our family. In the solo parent season, we can feel like we are just barely hanging on. Being intentional can seem like a lofty goal when you’re holding on by a thread, just praying and asking God for His grace to get us through as we raise these tiny humans.
Directing the course of our family as a single parent can feel daunting. We end up paying attention and reacting to the urgent things that come up while neglecting what’s important – creating stability and direction for our family in the new normal. Sometimes all we can do is hold on but, as we journey down the solo parent path, it’s important to be deliberate in our steps. To start effective parenting, we need a road map, a vision, or a mission statement to keep us focused on what is important to our family.
How do you measure success?
George Barna, leading researcher, and author, asked Robert, “How do you measure success?” He went on to explain that he asked because you get what you measure. Unless you know and identify where you want to go, you are never going to get there. A friend of Kim’s whose husband was battling cancer shared, “Life is a vapor. Evaluate and measure carefully.” We need to be intentional about our investment in our family. We need to have a definition of where we want to go and what we stand for as a family. Unless we have a direction that we want to take our family, we can’t and won’t get there.
Ann Voskamp talks about developing her own “family manifesto” that emphasizes the values and priorities that are important to her and to her family. Solo parent families can do the same thing.  Creating a “Solo Family Mission Statement” doesn’t have to be overwhelming. A mission statement is defined as “a formal summary of the aims and values of a company, organization, or individual”. We can keep it simple and fun.
Here’s how:
Create A Solo Parent Family Mission Statement

This is something fun to do as a family. It shows intentionality, builds unity, and empowers our kids to be a part of creating what we want our family to be all about.

We suggest setting aside time - maybe an hour - and work through some of the prompts and questions provided. Write down the answers then fill out our sample “Solo Family Mission Statement”. (Download this tool to create a Solo Family Mission statement - http://bit.ly/SP-MissionStatement )  When done, we suggest you frame it and hang somewhere in your house

A Solo Family Mission Statement addresses 3 areas:

Eternal - Our Spiritual Anchor
Internal - Who we are and how we treat each other
External - What do we want to be remembered or known for as a family (collectively - not individually)

Discussion prompts

ETERNAL
Who created us?
Why are we here on earth?
What bible verse / story comes to mind when we think of our story? (our struggles and God’s promise)
What is the main spiritual purpose of our home?
What principles do we think God wants us to prioritize? E.g. Generosity, hospitality, strength, justice?

INTERNAL
Who are we as a family?
What values should drive our dynamics?
Name three things you think we could do better as a family.
What are a few strengths of each member of our family?
What are practical ways we can serve each other?
If our home could be filled with one emotion, what would it be?
How do we want to feel when we come home?
What is important to show each other?
Have each family member describe how they want to be treated - e.g. kindness, acceptance, grace, patience

EXTERNAL
What are we passionate about as a family?
What do we want to be remembered and known for as a family? (collectively - not individually)
What are practical ways we can serve others outside our family?
What would people say today about our family as a whole?
Name three adjectives we would like people to use to describe our home environment.

Sample Solo Family Mission Statement
(Use the answers to the prompts to fill out the mission statement below or make your own.)

We, the [family name], believe that God put this family together for a purpose. We treasure our unique story that demonstrates that all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. As a reflection of our heavenly Father’s care for us, in this Family we:
Make [eternal principle] and [eternal principle] our main goals.
Make our home a place of [internal adjective], [internal adjective], and [internal adjective].
Treat each other with [internal adjective], [internal adjective], and [internal adjective]
Pray that people see our family as an example of [external value], [external value] and [external value].

Key Verse
Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Colossians 3:12-17

If you create a Solo Parent Family Mission Statement, we would LOVE to know! Will you share it with us? Respond in the podcast comments on our Facebook page or on Instagram and let us know! Use one or both hashtags, #SoloParentFamilyMissionStatement #SoloParentFamily Manifesto, and tag us @soloparentsociety so we can read it, celebrate with you,  and agree with you in prayer for your family.  Or send it to us at info@spsociety.co!
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Single parents, every week we talk further about the topics we discuss in our podcast in our Solo Parent Society groups, meeting online 6 days a week. As you walk the journey of dating as single parents, we want to offer encouragement and hope any way we can. Join our Solo Parent Society community by participating in one of our groups, Follow us on Facebook and Instagram (@soloparentsociety). Subscribe to our weekly podcast via AccessMore or wherever you get your podcasts. Download our Solo Parent app FREE in the app store for easy links to our podcast, groups, and our “Sound Mind Set” daily reflection tool for ten minutes every day to breathe, focus on God and His word. We love to connect single parents to resources that offer hope and help. If you want to donate so we can reach more single-parent families, go to www.soloparentsociety.com. Questions? Email us at info@spsociety.com.