In the last few years I have learned to trust God. Pretty implicitly. For my own well being and for life in general. Granted, to learn this, I had to be broken. Then, I had to rise with a different sense of the word "dependent."
When it comes to my son, however, I'm still not there. I start sentences with phrases with conjunctions. "I trust God, but..." It's kind of ridiculous how we like to hold on to things we think of as our own, isn't it?! Why in the world do I doubt the God of the universe when it comes to knowing what is best for my son when I can so easily, every day, turn my own life over to Him?
And the answer is pretty simple. I don't want my son to get hurt. Physically, sure, but what seems to be the problem of late is an emotional heartbreak that I cannot fix. Do you know the pain of not being able to help your child process something? MAN!
I've been wrestling with this because my heart seems to be healed from something that my son is just beginning to struggle with...and I can't take the hurt away. And I cannot help. And to make things even more interesting, as I was praying today, the nudge from the Holy Spirit was that his heartbreak is okay and will help him grow. What the what?!
Mom's. What is one of the biggest prayers for your child? If you plan ahead, I hope you are already praying for the future spouse of your kids. If you're not - get on that :). I hope you are also already praying for the kind of husband/wife your own child will turn out to be. What I learned today, is that it is possible that my son has to go through some heartache he will remember so that as a man, he can lead his family in a Christ-centered way. And that leading will be better if he has to do some breaking - and be old enough to remember it - first.
That lesson applies to all of our children. No matter how much the "helicopter" mom in us likes to hover. No matter the spiritual measures we take...our children will get hurt. And their little hearts will break. And tears will fall that cannot be wiped away because some things cannot be discussed in a way that their brains and hearts can comprehend. Sometimes we have to tell our children that the only thing they (and we) can do is TRUST God. That He has a plan we cannot understand...and that sometimes that plan involves what seems like unanswered prayers and pain and a whole lot of not-so-good so that when we emerge as Children of God; we look more like Him and less like ourselves.
Friends, if we have to tell our children to trust God because we have no other answers; my prayer is that we mean it. Not just for ourselves, but for our kids. Tell your child to trust God and then your job is to yourself TRUST GOD with your child. A nice little loop! If we cannot trust Him, really trust Him, what kind of children are we? Look at how your children trust you. They always do it. No matter what. And as humans, we are not always that awesome. Friends, here is the goal: trust God the way your children trust you!
When it comes to my son, however, I'm still not there. I start sentences with phrases with conjunctions. "I trust God, but..." It's kind of ridiculous how we like to hold on to things we think of as our own, isn't it?! Why in the world do I doubt the God of the universe when it comes to knowing what is best for my son when I can so easily, every day, turn my own life over to Him?
And the answer is pretty simple. I don't want my son to get hurt. Physically, sure, but what seems to be the problem of late is an emotional heartbreak that I cannot fix. Do you know the pain of not being able to help your child process something? MAN!
I've been wrestling with this because my heart seems to be healed from something that my son is just beginning to struggle with...and I can't take the hurt away. And I cannot help. And to make things even more interesting, as I was praying today, the nudge from the Holy Spirit was that his heartbreak is okay and will help him grow. What the what?!
Mom's. What is one of the biggest prayers for your child? If you plan ahead, I hope you are already praying for the future spouse of your kids. If you're not - get on that :). I hope you are also already praying for the kind of husband/wife your own child will turn out to be. What I learned today, is that it is possible that my son has to go through some heartache he will remember so that as a man, he can lead his family in a Christ-centered way. And that leading will be better if he has to do some breaking - and be old enough to remember it - first.
That lesson applies to all of our children. No matter how much the "helicopter" mom in us likes to hover. No matter the spiritual measures we take...our children will get hurt. And their little hearts will break. And tears will fall that cannot be wiped away because some things cannot be discussed in a way that their brains and hearts can comprehend. Sometimes we have to tell our children that the only thing they (and we) can do is TRUST God. That He has a plan we cannot understand...and that sometimes that plan involves what seems like unanswered prayers and pain and a whole lot of not-so-good so that when we emerge as Children of God; we look more like Him and less like ourselves.
Friends, if we have to tell our children to trust God because we have no other answers; my prayer is that we mean it. Not just for ourselves, but for our kids. Tell your child to trust God and then your job is to yourself TRUST GOD with your child. A nice little loop! If we cannot trust Him, really trust Him, what kind of children are we? Look at how your children trust you. They always do it. No matter what. And as humans, we are not always that awesome. Friends, here is the goal: trust God the way your children trust you!
Very encouraging thank you Betsy!
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