A Network of Shepherds may be Helpful in a Child's Life But Parents Maintain Primary Responsibility:
God gave parents the primary responsibility of shepherding their children. While the church, teachers, coaches, babysitters, grandparents, and others may influence children, they are not the ones to whom God gave the entrustment of nurture.
The African proverb that "it takes a village to raise a child" has some merit, but it must be kept in perspective and it must not be used as an excuse for parents to neglect their God-given responsibility.
The "village" should only be seen as a supplement to the parents.
The "village" is not filled with all good influences.
Parents must help children process the teaching and world views they encounter out in the "village" to discern between truth and error, to distinguish what is worldly wisdom and what it godly.
Children will come under many influences. Parents who take their shepherding role seriously must seek the cooperation and alliance of the other significant people in their children's lives.
Shepherding is a Parents' Job Description:
Scripture clearly describes the role of parents as those of a shepherd.
Deut. 6:4-9 - "These commandments . . . Impress them upon your children. Talk about them . . . Tie them as symbols . . . Write them on . . . " --- training that is constant, consistent, deliberate, both modeled and spoken
Prov. 13:24 - "He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him." --- training that is corrective and rooted in love, that is proactive not reactive
Prov. 22:6 - "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." --- training that is personalized and relevant
Eph. 6:4 - "Bring them up in the training (Greek word: paideia - instruction, nurture, correction) and instruction (Greek word: nouthesia - putting in mind, admonition) of the Lord" --- training both by action and by words
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