Parenting is like weather in the northwest. It can be sunny and beautiful one second and rainy and gloomy the next. I had one of those moments this morning.
It’s our day off. Let me rephrase that. It’s as “off” as it gets when at home with a one year old. Our oldest boys were at school and I decided to say no to the housework staring me in the face and embrace a little rest. I grabbed my cup of hot tea, turned on a podcast and plopped down on a bean bag in my kids’ room so our youngest could play. I started getting sentimental knowing that these days are fleeting and our last baby isn’t such a baby anymore. I picked him up, snuggled him, lavished him with kisses and put him back down to play. He kept returning for more. “I love this kid so much,” I thought.
Almost simultaneously with my thought, he looked at me and hit me in the face. When I corrected him, he used his new found and favorite word, “No.” And just like that, ladies and gentlemen, our sweet moment was hijacked by stubbornness and disobedience.
Parenting is no joke. The emotions of joy, frustration, excitement, sadness, hope and fear (possibly all in the same day) can sometimes leave us frazzled and overwhelmed. But we are not alone. We may feel alone. And often times, in the natural sense, there are situations where a parent is physically alone. But when we understand that parenting is a gift, we can also understand that the Giver of our precious gift/gifts is with us teaching us how to parent.
I want to encourage all of us today to look to Jesus, the giver of all good things. He knows the strengths and weaknesses of our children, just like He knows our own. And He has handpicked us to help them find their way. Today, let’s allow Jesus to shepherd our hearts and teach us how to shepherd the hearts of our little ones.
Happy Monday.