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Our children are just as much victors as we are. We often forget how hard the world works to get our kids to believe they are less than who God seems them to be. Our kids represent the future of the world we live in. Not only is it important for us to make victor living the foundation of our lives, it makes sense to help our kids see just how much of a victor they are as well.
As far as the way the world sees our children, society has taken a turn that just doesn't make sense. The world says that we need to dumb things down to a common level so that no one will feel bad about themselves. Youth sports has gone through a phase where the score isn't kept and there aren't any winners or losers. It was thought that some kids might think less of themselves if they lost at the sport they were playing. How does that kind of thinking make it possible for us to grow into the belief that we are victors no matter how things turn out in our lives?
Those who have promoted this philosophy when it comes to protecting our children from the damaging effects of keeping score have bought into the victim thinking principals that I have spoke against for almost a year now. It is when we tie what we do to who we are that victim thinking comes rushing in. That's why people can think that by not keeping score they can make everyone feel like a victor. That's so counter intuitive to the reality that our kids are going to have to face for the rest of their lives.
Fact is that you win some and some you will lose in this world. It is when we connect who we are to whether we win or lose that we set ourselves up for victim thinking ways of dealing with the world around us. Whether we win or we lose, we need someway to help us realize that we are still victors. The only way I have found to make victor living possible is to know what God says about us.
I love today's Bible reading. I have used it as part of our birth announcement for our kids many years ago, It says....
One day children were brought to Jesus in the hope that he would lay hands on them and pray over them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus intervened: “Let the children alone, don’t prevent them from coming to me. God’s kingdom is made up of people like these.” After laying hands on them, he left. Matthew 19:13-14 (MSG)
I see three things God is asking when it comes to raising little victors. First of all we are to bring our kids to Jesus. In the days Christ walked the earth, that meant seeking out where Jesus was and making the trek to bring your kids to Him. Such is the case today. We have to seek where Jesus is and bring out kids there to Him. That might be your local Church. It might be a particular set of friends who are really drawn to living like victors. Seeking Christ might mean you finding him yourself and sharing who God says you are to your children. Raising little victors start as we take seriously the call to bring our kids to Him.
The second thing I see is that we are to expect our kids to be touched by what they encounter when we bring them to Christ. Coming to Christ should be more than just a head based experience. I believe our kids need to be touched in their hearts when it comes to the good news Jesus wants us to know about who He sees our kids to be. This requires that we keep our eyes open for opportunities to point out qualities we recognize in our kids that have come from the hand of God.
Don't know what that might look like in your kids lives? Start with the fruits of the spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility, and self-control. Look for when your kids exercise one of these gifts and call them out for it. Remind them that it is the very spirit of God working in them to make these traits happen in recognizable ways. Where the spirit of the Lord is is a freedom that comes with victor living.
Not only are we to bring our kids to the Lord, and when we do, we are to expect His blessing to be on them, we are to remove any barriers to our kids finding their victor status before the Lord. That means that we might have to change some of the activities that we are quick to fill our kids time with. The distractions of life are obstacles for you and for me when it comes to recognizing what God is saying about us. Don't you think that the busy schedules we fall prey to are just as distracting when it comes to our kids learning what God thinks of them? Be on the lookout for obstacles in what you do that might make it more and more challenging for your kids to grow into the fullness of their victor status.
What really touches me about our reading today is how much Jesus wants the kids with Him. The disciples tried to stop the kids from getting in our Lord's way. Kids can be messy. They can create a chaotic environment. They can be distracting. The disciples didn't want Jesus' work to be hindered by a bunch of kids tripping Him up. Jesus saw things so differently.
He didn't care how messy or loud or distracting the kids could be. He seems to relish the fact that kids loved being around Him. I think we need to realize something from this truth so that we too can live more like the victor God made us to be. It is as we come to Jesus just as we are that we stand the best chance for the blessing of His presence to have the kinds of impact we need on our lives.
The Bible says that we are to come to God as a child. That means we don't have to clean up our mess, tone ourselves down or be unnoticed when we step into the thrown room of God. We should barge in like we own the place, the way a child would do. Kids don't worry about what others might think when it comes to getting the attention they need from someone they love. They go after that object of their love in ways that make even the most powerful of us melt. God loves to melt as we come barging in expecting the love He is so ready to pour out on us. Victors are nothing more than kids who want the love of a loving father and aren't afraid to go to great lengths to find that love.
Victor living isn't just for us, it is for our kids as well. Unfortunately, victim thinking is just as likely in our kids lives as it is in ours. It is as we fight for our kids to see themselves in God's eyes that victor living becomes something our children can learn is for them. We have to be intentional about making happen all our kids need to build a life on victor living so that their future is as free from victim thinking as it can possibly be.
Next time you look at your children, see them as God does. They are just as blameless and without fault as you are. Let them know how much you love the victor status you see in them each and every day. Resist the temptation to let what they do be proof of that victor status. Let God show you how to bring your kids to Him for His blessing of presence. May your kids grow up to be the power houses of victor living this world needs for them to be.
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