Shelia Erwin is the mother of filmmaking duo the Erwin Brothers, known for the popular Christian films October Baby, Moms’ Night Out, and I Can Only Imagine. Her sons, Andrew and Jon, were always discovering new interests in junior high school, so Shelia wasn’t surprised when they became passionate about the visual arts.
She couldn’t foresee at the time how her boys’ newest hobby would someday blossom. Still, she and her husband Hank encouraged them however they could. Like the time they bought Andrew and Jon inexpensive video cameras and enough plywood to turn an unused portion of their garage into a makeshift movie set.
She and Hank also challenged their boys to work hard. They told them, “If you’re willing to dedicate 20 years of your life to find success in the movie business, then go for it.”
Simply put, Shelia and Hank allowed their boys to dream and waited to see what God might do. They dreamed with their boys.
For you, instead of a movie set in the garage, you attend sporting events and dance recitals. Or you invest in art or music lessons. Whatever your child’s interest, you’re stepping into their world and becoming a part of what they love.
We invited Shelia Erwin to our broadcast to talk about helping children dream big by pursuing God, discovering and understanding their gifts and talents, and being purposeful in everything they do.
You can hear the Focus on the Family Broadcast “Dreaming with Your Child” on your local radio station, online, on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or on our free phone app.
Shelia encourages parents not to rush in to squash a child’s dreams. Until you have to intervene, let other influences take their course. Some of their dreams will die on their own. Sooner or later, your children will face harsh realities about what bringing their dreams to life will require of them. When they do, they’ll either dig in and work harder (that budding engineer might suddenly understand the importance of getting his eighth-grade math homework done), or they’ll choose a different course (your hopeful athlete might decide that world record no one has ever broken isn’t worth the effort).
Sheila has written a book about helping children discover their deepest passion called Raising Up Dreamers: Find and Grow Your Child’s God Given Talents. I’d like to offer you a copy of it for a gift of any amount. When you help Focus on the Family today, your donation will be doubled for twice the impact in helping others through this ministry. Our thanks to generous donors who’ve made that possible. Visit our website for more information.
Photo from Shutterstock
Leave a Reply