Growing Kids - Not Grass

1992

LETTING GO

PART 2



Happy Thanksgiving! Don't you just love this time of the year, with all the gorgeous colors, the crisp feel of cool air, and the time set aside for us to focus our hearts on the blessings God has given us and give Him thanks? We all have so much to be thankful for, especially if we have the privilege of being moms. I am so grateful to Him that He allowed me to raise 4 wonderful kids, and to have the joy of watching them raise their kids! It is indescribable joy!

In the last blog we opened the door to one of the hardest aspects of being a mother----letting go of them as they grow up. It is a difficult process, but one that must be done in order for our kids to become the successful, independent, productive adults we hope they will be. So let's jump into the next discussion of this important aspect of successful parenting.

There is no question that God loves kids. After all,  He was the first parent! If anyone ever had the toughest experience in letting go of a child, He surely wins first place in my mind. He had to let His only Son go so that man could receive forgiveness and eternal life with Him. He knew what was ahead for Jesus, and yet He sent Him to earth to accomplish what He was created for. I just cannot wrap my head around how great a love He has for you and me and all mankind, that He would sacrifice His Son. But He did, and I am so glad He did, and I know He understands our pain in letting go, better than anyone possibly could.

There is a special place in God's heart for children. They are His to begin with and they are His forever. He entrusts them to us and they are not mistakes, but creations of Him with a purpose on this earth. Their lives are ordained by God, just like yours and mine were. I confess, however, that I don't understand why kids are born to abusive, incompetent, horrible parents. I do know that He knows the big picture and the consequences of their actions toward the precious gifts He has given them WILL be suffered.

Matthew 18: 6-7 "But whoever causes one of these little ones who believes in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea. Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!"

v. 10 "Take heed that you do not desise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in heaven."

Psalm 127:6 "Behold, children are a gift from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is His reward."

Matthew 19:14 "But Jesus said, Let the little childre come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven"

Jeremiah 1:5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you;----"

Psalm 139: 13-16 "For you have formed me in my inward parts; You have covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth. Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed. And in Your book they were all written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them."

Wow!! If there was ever doubt in anyone that children have life even before they are formed in the womb, that last verse puts that to rest! God ordained our lives before we were ever born and He has a plan for us, including our kids. Knowing that they are His to begin with, He knew their every part before they were on our radar, and that He was there when they were formed in our bodies, do you think for a second He can't take better care of them than we can? If we truly grasp that He ordained their lives and has a plan for them, letting go is not an option, but a privilege in releasing them to Him to accomplish His plans for them. The bottom line is this----children are precious in His sight and He blesses the womb with them. However, they are never to be held in a tightly gripped fist, but as anything that God has blessed us with, they are to be held in open hands, releasing them back to Him. Asking Him for His help to do this, and leaning on His strength, you can do it! We will talk more about this when we "meet" again! For now, hug those babies,(no matter how old they are) hold them tight to your heart, and point them to Jesus, for He loves them, this I know.