Giving them Jesus
Giving them Jesus
Pacing the passage of our home late one night, my infant crying fractiously in my arms, tears streamed down my face as I struggled to soothe the mysterious cause of my tiny girl’s distress. Overwhelmed with the enormity of the life-long responsibility bound up in parenting, I cried out to God “Help me! I don’t know what I’m doing! I’m so scared I’m going to make mistakes” and our loving, heavenly Father echoed these words in my heart:
“You will make mistakes. And it’s ok. Just give her Jesus.”
What sweet relief washed over my soul as in that instant I was reminded that my God does not expect perfection. He of all people is well acquainted with my every weakness. Even in my parenting it was to be expected that I would get things wrong. And even in this there is a sweet redemption. In all of this, for all of us, for all of life: Jesus.
From that day forward my central desire has been to learn how to give my sweet girl Jesus. It’s an incredibly humbling journey as I confess I don’t have it all together, and moment by moment I desperately need Him to parent through me. But what a comfort to know that even in our lack, He is more than enough!
As we strive to give our children Jesus, with the fervent prayer that they would know Him, and believe Him and understand the He alone is God (Isaiah 43:10), His Word is our ever perfect guide. In Deuteronomy chapters 6 and 11 we find a wonderful place to start:
Seek and serve God with all that you are (Deuteronomy 6:5; 11:1): It starts with us. We cannot give our children what we ourselves do not have. Learning to love God and to walk in an intimate relationship with Him is the best thing we can do for our children. As they see us resting in, and relying on, and enjoying Him, they will learn to do the same. There is no pressure here to be the perfect Christian but, rather, an honest one – one who knows they need Jesus and one who makes it their life’s goal to love Him with all their heart, soul and strength (Deut 6:5). Let your children ‘catch’ you praying, worshipping, and reading your Bible (one with real paper pages makes a much deeper impression than an electronic one). And when you mess up, let them hear you ask forgiveness – God’s and theirs.
Teach your children diligently (Deuteronomy 6:7; 11:19): Be very intentional about making the most of every day, of every opportunity to speak about the things of the Lord with your children. Tell them stories of His faithfulness in your own life (Deut 11:7), share with them things you are currently learning, encourage them with lessons you have learnt in the Lord, and don’t forget to ask them what they are learning (this helps them learn to be sensitive to God’s hand in their own lives). Be ready with a verse that undergirds the lessons you want them to learn (about obedience, faithfulness, kindness etc) or addresses what they are going through – you don’t have to know them off by heart, search the Scriptures together. The more you do this, the more natural it becomes, as you weave the Trinity and eternity into your family’s hearts and world-view.
Signs and evidences (Deuteronomy 6:7-8; 11:18,20): In the Old Testament, God’s chosen people interpreted His Word to them literally and wore signs of their faith on their persons (phylacteries) and marked their doorposts (mezuzah) with the blood of the Passover lamb. As Christians we know that we are called to bear fruit according to that which we profess (Luke 6:43) and so we know from the Word that is important that our lifestyle reflects our beliefs. Merely going through the motions of church or life-groups, or gathering the’ tools’ of our faith (Bibles, books, and such) around us, is not enough. Besides, our children will see straight through our hypocrisy! But when these things fill our lives and our homes as a natural progression of loving and seeking hard after God, and desiring to share that with our children, there is a beautiful transformation in the way we live, and of our family space and function, that evidences the centrality of God in our lives. This can anchor our children in the development of their own faith, giving direction and meaning to what we do and say. The fruit we bear in relating to our spouse, our children, and others will be the most telling evidence of all – our very actions, the words out of our mouths, the attitudes of our hearts. Praise God that He who has called us is faithful and He will bring these things about as we seek Him (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).
Recalling Paul’s letter to Timothy and his observation that the faith of Timothy’s grandmother and mother were now living on in Timothy himself, I am reminded that it was the sincerity – the genuiness – of Eunice and Lois’s faith which impacted Timothy’s life for good and for God (2 Timothy 1:5). As we seek to equip our children for life there can be no better place to start than to focus on experiencing God for ourselves, sharing that with our children, and modelling a life of real, living faith. We will make mistakes, but if we point them to Jesus He will redeem that which we have surrendered to Him (2 Tim 1:12).
About
Purpose:
This page has been designed for the purpose of encouraging and supporting parents within the Durbanville Community, as they seek to raise their children up in the Lord. This is not a page where experts in parenting are giving their views on better parenting, but rather ordinary men and woman in DBC who want to help and encourage parents within the community as they look to raise their children up in the Lord.
How does it work?
Every month starting from February 2018, someone within DBC will contribute a blog post which will be on a topic that is relevant to parenting. It may provide practical ways or ideas which can help benefit you as a parent or parent’s within the community.
Mission:
That parents will be encouraged by this page and that they will benefit from the posts as they seek to be better parents to their children.