This month, everywhere you look, we are being told to be thankful. There are lists being made, blog link-ups being joined, pressure to BE THANKFUL. But today, I come to you with a concerned heart. I’ve been reading social media statuses, blog posts, and hearing comments in real life that are disturbing. One of our most precious gifts is daily being trashed in our personal medias. Y’all, I’m talking about our kids. We seem to not be living in thankfulness for them.
Children Are A Blessing Not A Burden
My concerned all started back in August. Reading about how parents were counting down the days until school started again, and they got their lives back. There have been plenty of posts where parents are complaining about having to give up sleep for a sick child, and lots of lamenting over monies well spent for necessities. And it occurred to me. Aren’t these children supposed to be blessings from the Lord? If so, why are we not treating them so?
I often quote Psalm 127:3, “Children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward.” But the entire chapter is speaking of God’s sovereignty in our lives. It lays out that without God, we labor in our homes, jobs, and cities in vain. And it is a strong message for our families. It speaks of children being arrows in their fathers’ quiver. Arrows were indispensable to a warrior. They could not succeed in battle without them. And the author of this Psalm says our children are just like those arrows. Our children are to be indispensable to us as parents. So again, why are we so quick to dismiss our children as a nuisance?
Parents, we have bought into a mindset that is just plain sinful – that we love our children, but they are an inconvenience to our time and our pocket books. We are playing the unwanted martyr, making unwanted sacrifices so we look like the good parent all the while grumbling in our task. I was reading through 2 Corinthians a few weeks back, and was convicted of this sin my heart has harbored. In chapter nine, Paul compares the harvest rightfully to what was sown, and points out that God loves a cheerful giver. Oh friends. How this tore into my heart! If I am sparingly, grudgingly putting into my children, I will reap a sparse harvest and will have hard hearts in my home. The more cheerfully, joyously I put into my kids, the sweeter the harvest. So what do we do?
Being Thankful For Our Children
Let me challenge you to first, go to God’s Word. Begin seeking Him out as you start this journey of cheerfully parenting. And if you would indulge me, let me challenge you some more. Do not complain about your children. They see what you write. They hear how you talk of them. Even just one remark can scar that child’s heart and memory. Start praising your children EVERYDAY. To their sweet faces. On all your social media outlets. Let the world know what kind of blessing has been bestowed upon you. Do not be ashamed! This is such an intertwined concept. You are pouring what is best into your children, all the while praising God and giving Him thanks for His presence in your family’s life! It is hard, slow work. But even I was able to see the joy of my child while cleaning up the peed on clothes from yet another failed potty training attempt and working ointment on a defiant, hardened heart this week. God is faithful.
“Lord, I come to your throne counting my blessings. Naming them, one by one. Thank you for my soft hearted Malcolm. My servant hearted, Jeffie Jean. My artist hearted, Daniel. My loving hearted Heath. My inquiring hearted, Terry. My joyous hearted Paulee Rea. My rambunctious hearted Anderson. My precious hearted Georgia Beth. And my newly beating heart you have formed in my womb. Lord, may the words that cross my lips be good and wholesome, uplifting to me, strengthening to my children. And above all, may I always remember what a true blessing they will forever be.”
I love seeing parents who truly treat their children as blessings from God! It’s an inspiration to me.