Mom Heart Moments #251

I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know Him who has been from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I have written to you, children, because you know the Father.

PEDALING AS FAST AS THEIR SHORT pudgy legs would pump, two ruddy-faced, puffing, and deeply intent little boys came racing up beside me on red bikes. I was out for a late Sunday afternoon walk on a glorious Colorado day with my golden retriever, Kelcey.

“Hey, ma’am, what is the name of your dog? Can we pet it?”

Chattering, laughing, and petting ensued. “How old is this dog? She’s big!” and “Where do you live? We found an amazing hill to race our bikes on, but we won’t run over you,” they burst out, words running one on top of another in their excitement. The glory of young manhood was at its best.

Oh, how I love childhood years. Each day is a miracle.

According to my sweet, learned husband, the Bible seems to divide the life of people into three phases: childhood, young adulthood, and adulthood. In our home, we treated our children differently at each phase. Each new level of life came with new training and responsibility in order to give them a heart for our King and for His Kingdom.

Helping our children understand that they are quite influential and crucial in extending the influence of the Kingdom of God in their lifetime is foundational. They must learn and embrace this theme in their inner being as part of the self-image, from the point of view of God’s design and purpose for them. The home is God’s perfect place for passing on these eternal values, and crafting such a home is an art and one of the greatest callings a mother can fulfill.

Which phase are your children in today? How might you adjust your expectations as well as training to embrace that reality?