Help! I’m Ruining My Kids
By Abbey Wedgeworth (Zondervan, 2026)
At a time when parenting experts are literally in the palms of our hands and artificial intelligence can instantly synthesize countless studies to determine the “best” choice for our children, today’s parents feel a near-paralyzing pressure to get everything right. Given the endless information at our fingertips, it’s easy to see how parents might blame themselves for every area of childhood that feels less than optimal. In her latest book, Help! I’m Ruining My Kids: A Gospel Guide for the Mom Who is Desperate for Change, Bible teacher Abbey Wedgeworth speaks directly to the anxieties of modern Christian parents, gently redirecting their eyes from themselves and back to God.
Wedgeworth’s tone and candor are unique and refreshing in a world saturated with parenting advice. Rather than offering quick-fix strategies or setting up unrealistic expectations, she presents a gospel-centered path to growth and freedom. Her vulnerable stories feel so honest and familiar that they could have been pulled from my own diary, reminding readers that no parenting mishap is outside the reach of God’s grace.
Wedgeworth does not write from the standpoint of a parenting expert, but from that of a fellow mom who understands the weight of parenting responsibility as well as the temptation toward guilt and self-condemnation. She starts by inviting mothers to identify both their God-given gifts and their limitations, encouraging readers to embrace their unique design and not obsess over perfection.
Rather than condemning the inevitable moments of overwhelm that lead to overreaction, Wedgeworth offers practical tools to help parents reset and recover. These include box breathing, running one’s hands under cold water, and scripture passages and conversation scripts to reconnect with a child after conflict. She ends each chapter by summarizing the larger truths she hopes readers will carry into their parenting as well as attainable ways to apply those truths in their relationship with both themselves and their children. Through each of these steps, Wedgeworth widens her readers’ lens of motherhood, reminding us that parenting, like sanctification, is a lifelong process marked by missteps and, more importantly, propelled by grace.
One of the book’s greatest strengths is Wedgeworth’s ability to reframe what many parents view as failure. Instead of seeing mistakes as evidence that we are damaging our children, she reveals how these occasions of weakness or regret can model a joyful dependence upon God. Through opportunities for reflection, repentance, and even group discussion questions, Wedgeworth provides weary readers hope and reassurance that our children’s futures lie not on their parents’ shoulders but in the hands of a loving and sovereign creator.
This article also appears in the October 2026 issue of U.S. Catholic (Vol. 91, No. 10, page 36). Click here to subscribe to the magazine.
