Thursday, June 25, 2009

For My Children...

In light of having my mind on loss today...I want to put my list of hopes for my children. It isn't exhaustive...but it does represent my dreams for them. So...here goes...

I hope that in your lifetime…every year…you will witness a miracle.

That you will have a sweet love story to relay to your children and grandchildren.

That your health is excellent and your lifestyle choices are wise.

That if you are sensitive, that you learn to channel it so that you cry fewer tears of frustration and pain...and can strengthen your heart, with God’s help, into something valiant. If you are less sensitive by nature, I hope that God will touch your heart often enough to keep it pliable.

That you wear the “cloak of humility” enough to keep you grounded, but that it not be so heavy that it leaves you stunted.

That your eyes will not only see what is there, but what could be.

That your ears will not only hear what is said, but what is meant.

That your relationships will be in inverse order of the world’s teaching: spiritual, social, emotional then physical, instead of physical, emotional, social, and then spiritual. (I actually got this from Chip Ingram.)

That you learn to do one thing really well and that it gives you an outlet.

That you grow up without growing old.

That you learn the difference between wants and needs.

That you have the opportunity to have one thing in your life teach you the value of patience and persistence. It isn’t all about instant gratification.

That you are able to watch your parents experience the joy of having at least one of their dreams for you come true. And that you will experience that same joy with your children.

That you learn to write a thank you note and a message in a sympathy card. If you don’t know the purpose of either, and depend on other people to do this for you, then you are missing more in life than you know.

That you know how to defend your faith.

That you will learn how to use the gifts God gave you to bless others and work for the advancement of His kingdom. May you never detest the gifts, hide them, or think of them as unworthy for use.

That you will never spend one minute of regret for the negative outcome of a situation you could have avoided. I hope you choose wisely. But even if you don't...that you will know that redemption exists.

That you will not become bored with the things you have, but will instead be overwhelmed with God’s generosity to you…so much so that you are compelled to share your blessings with others.

That you will have people in your life who will encourage you, who you will want to be better because of your association with them, and who think better of you than you think of yourself.

May you always know that no matter how many fans you have, God is still your biggest cheerleader, and your parents aren’t far behind.

That you will never allow a disappointment to define your life.

That you will be a good steward of what you are given.

That you will be sensitive to God’s urging.

That you will realize that most things happen exactly on time...and that time is generally far later than is convenient. Rarely does God act until the last possible minute. He does this, I think, to remind us who’s really in charge. Never give up. Even past the time that you think something should have occurred. It may be a “no.” More than likely, it is a “not now.”

That you never expect the worst. If you do, that’s probably what you’ll get. When your life is spinning out of control on the road of life, don’t look at the wall you are about to hit. Put your eyes back on the road. Where your eyes are is where the car is going a lot more often than not.

That you always find a silver lining.

That you know how incredibly lucky I feel to have you in my life.

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