Category Archives: Children

Stepping Up

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Clog spotWhen I lived alone in my cottage, I used to put my clogs on the fireplace hearth when I wasn’t using them. The opposite of that simple picture is the one below, a line-up belonging to Hans, Katy, and their 3 young children.

 

The Line-up

Today as I studied the assortment of boots, shoes, and slippers next to my front door, my mind rushed to the word “commitment.” Having a family is a massive one, and footwear is only a small part of it. For Katy and Hans, there will soon be a pair of baby booties at the end of that long line, too, and an increased commitment to go along with it.

Having children requires making an ongoing commitment that refuses to quit. But isn’t that true with most of life’s worthwhile undertakings? To make them work, we can’t allow ourselves to give up or walk away. On this New Year’s Day, I’ve been asking myself what worthwhile commitments God wants me to make in 2013.

Scripture tells us to carefully count the cost of taking on new responsibilities, and to do so for an important reason: so that we’ll be able to do what we said we’d do. Saying yes to something without following through is to be avoided.

Jesus is our example in this, demonstrating the ultimate in follow-through. He volunteered to do the most difficult job that existed, giving his sinless life for our sins. Sticking with that commitment turned out to be excruciating for him, but he did it anyway.

My response to his example should be to accept whatever assignment he asks me to do in 2013, first counting the cost, then making plans to pay it. He won’t ask me to do what I can’t, nor will he assign me something that will swamp me. If I find that happening, the commitment I’ve taken on won’t have been from him.

But how will I be able to tell if a commitment I’m asked to make is from God or some other source? Jesus is our example in that, too. He only did what God asked him to do and nothing else, a pro at discerning what that was. So if we ask him to help us sort through our own commitment-confusion, he will.

As 2013 begins and we decide how we’re going to spend our time (whether it involves a long line of family shoes or a single pair of clogs) we should run it all past the Lord first, to get his take on it. And then once we commit, we should take it all the way…. just like he does.

The Lord says, “Even if the mountains walk away and the hills fall to pieces, my love won’t walk away from you, my covenant commitment of peace won’t fall apart.” (Isaiah 54:10, The Message)

A Slippery Slope

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Hauling them upToday Hans, Louisa, and I took 3 little ones to our snow-covered beach where we careened down slippery dunes on plastic sleds amidst abundant giggles and squeals. Twice our sleds ended up in the creek, but wet legs and mittens never dampened spirits.

When we first arrived, the children couldn’t get enough of the “down” but resisted the arduous “ups”, pleading to be pulled to the top of the snowy dune while sitting in the sleds. We complied, wanting them to gain enough enthusiasm for the sledding experience to stay all afternoon.

Pull me up!After a few hauls up, however, we adults began insisting the children climb back up by themselves, to which there was unanimous objection. Ages 3, 2, and 2, they planted themselves at the bottom, refusing to come up without assistance. We stood at the top cajoling them, but still they refused, wanting us to make the experience easier on them.

I’ve done something quite similar when God has asked me to make a hard climb toward a difficult goal he’s set for me. Knowing it would be difficult and that he could make things easier caused me to plead for him to do so. But the hard truth was that without the pain, I’d have missed the gain.

Our little ones could have chosen to stand at the bottom of the hill indefinitely, but if they had, they’d have missed the delights of a fast ride down on a sled. Something similar happens when we mentally shake a fist at God and say, “You aren’t being fair! None of my friends have had to go through what you’re putting me through. I simply refuse to obey you.”

In that situation, God says the same thing Hans said to his children this afternoon. “Ok, have it your way. But you won’t get to slide down if you don’t come up first.”

All of us would rather live life on a continual down-hill, but that trajectory would put us on a slippery slope to self-indulgence. When we refuse to take any route other than the easy one, we become lethargic and spoiled. Worse yet, we miss the joy that becomes ours after we obey an all-wise God.

Ready to go!Even a young child can figure that out. Today after one of our little ones finally decided to trudge up the dune to get a ride down, the other two stumbled their way up, too. It was rewarding to see how well they adjusted to doing the difficult thing, if it meant they could have another joyful sled ride. Before long they were running up the dune to “go again.”

And it works the same with us. Once we’re willing to tackle God’s prescribed challenges, the excitement of sharing in the results he brings makes it much easier to trudge up next time, so we can “go again.”

“What I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach.” (Deuteronomy 30:11)

When we can’t understand…

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Having young children among us is always a plus. No matter what the stresses of the day, just when we need a lift, they come out with something interesting.

Neighbor's swing

For example, last week 4 year old Skylar and I walked across the road to take a break on our neighbor’s bench swing. (Thank you, Klints.) We were enjoying a conversation about whether or not the wet wood would dampen our clothes when she switched the subject. Pointing to a tall pine in our line of vision she said, “Wow, Grandma Midgee, look at that big tree!”

“Isn’t it pretty?” I said. “It’s still green in wintertime after all the other trees have lost their green leaves. It’s called an evergreen.”

When she didn’t respond I looked over. She was gazing up at the 50’ tree with a knitted brow, thinking deeply, and I knew something interesting was about to come out.

Tall evergreen

Finally she said, “Evergreen? What about ever-red or ever-purple? How ‘bout having some of those?”

Good question. Unless I wanted to go into the wonders of photosynthesis, I didn’t have a ready answer. So I just said, “That would be beautiful, Skylar. What a good idea!”

And that’s the thing about children. They’re always thinking, trying to understand the many mysteries in their world. As we adults grow older, we learn that there are scores of mysteries we’ll never understand. Maybe that’s why we subconsciously stop trying. When we get around children, though, their curiosity becomes contagious, and we begin again to wonder why things are the way they are.

To me the biggest mystery is why God continues to have any interest in us at all. Scripture makes it clear we were a tremendous disappointment to him when we chose sin over righteousness, and we continue to do it again and again, virtually daily. But for some reason unknown to us, he pursues us relentlessly, calling to us through circumstances, through the Bible, and through other people.

Why does he want us when we continually fall short of his ideal? The answer he gives when we ask is, “Because I love you.” That kind of love is a mystery to us, since we give or withhold love based mostly on performance.

In answer to that, he says, “Remember, I’m not you.”

So the only way to satisfactorily live with such a profound mystery is to simply accept that it’s true, and bask in that amazing love. One important thing to remember, though, is that doubting this divine love will only cause us trouble. Accepting it despite not understanding it is clearly the best choice.

Skylar

The only other thing we might do is ask a child. It could be that Skylar has an idea about why God continues to love us. In the mean time, as I’m pondering this great mystery on my walks through the woods, I’m going to keep my eyes peeled for some ever-reds and ever-purples.

“Show us your unfailing love, O Lord.” (Psalm 85:7)