Praying through it
Today’s world is a scary place to raise children. When I was a child we had free run of the neighborhood, and did’n have to be home until the streetlights came on. You knew your neighbors and your neighbors knew you, and your whole family. It was like having five mothers because if you did something wrong you can be sure your mother would know about it before you got home. But it also offered us a safety net, because every mother had their eye on every child in the neighborhood. Guess what, the world has changed. How many of you really know who your neighbors are, and have a relationship with them? Do you feel confident letting your children walk the streets of your town? Let me ask you this, when your babies were in car seats facing the rear, did you buy a mirror so you could see their face to make sure they are okay? When they were finally big enough to turn the car seat around and face the front, did you get a different type of mirror, so could still monitor what they were doing? God’s eyes are constantly trained on your children, just as you keep watch over them they are in his sight at all times. The Bible tells us: There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.
It is important that we raise children to know and love the Lord, but it is not an easy task. The best thing we can do is help our children know the Lord, in a personal relationship, not just know about Him. One of the things that touches my heart with my grandchildren is their ability to earnestly pray. My four-year-old grandson prays for his great-uncle to get well, with no coaxing or reminding. This is the foundation of a personal relationship with God, being able to communicate with him. This will especially help them in times of anxiety or fear, when they can talk to Jesus just like they would a friend, and know that he listening.
I have a five-year-old grandson who underwent surgery today. The surgery was minor but he still had to be put under general anesthetic to perform it. Although the five-year-old was not afraid, his mother was afraid for him. Because it was something that was out of her control, and if you’re a mother that is not something you give up easily. She called me to inform me of the surgery, but deep down I think she called for reassurance that her baby would be okay. I had no trouble whatsoever in giving her that reassurance, because I had full faith in Jesus Christ, and that HIS will would be done. Fear is not a weakness in faith, but it is what you do with that fear that defines you. In this case, I took it to the Lord and laid it at his feet, and came away with peace in my heart knowing everything would be okay. This little five-year-old boy is a rough and tumble little boy, who gets hurt on a daily basis. Nothing ever slows him down, or stops him from enjoying life to its fullest, absolutely fearlessly. The Bible tells us to have faith as a little child, because it is the absence of fear.
As parents we live in a world that is frightening for many reasons. Children didn’t get kidnapped every day when we were playing on the streets of our town, like they do now. There was no such thing as a school shooting, or any such sadistic action. But we have to rest our faith in the fact that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, as he will be tomorrow. We cannot drag our children along with us on our spiritual walk, but must help them forge a path of faith on their own. Ask your children when they get home from school, where did you see Jesus today? They may answer by saying, I saw someone share their lunch, or a toy. You can ask them what beauty they saw today that Jesus made, and they may tell you a deer, a bird, or a flower that they had seen. By doing this you will be teaching them to look for Jesus in everyday things all around them. Reading with them the Word of God is the best place to start, finishing it with a prayer.
We as authors could fill volumes of tomes with the horror stories we hear on a daily basis, about child abuse, sex trafficking, and kidnappings. If only accentuating the ugliness of the world could make it better, then it may be an option to write about it. I think we serve a higher purpose by accentuating the good in people, and the power of answered prayers.
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.
Philippians 4:6-7,13
Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
I Peter 5:7
Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad.
Proverbs 12:25
Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
John 14:27
“And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee.”
Psalms 9:10