Enjoy This Time
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Last week, my husband and I celebrated seventeen years of marriage by taking the family on vacation in Northeast Georgia. We had an amazing time hiking waterfalls and driving the Blue Ridge Parkway. The leaves in higher elevations were absolutely perfect. We thoroughly enjoy our trips camping in Georgia and have just about made it a yearly tradition.
Really, though, there was nothing incredibly special about this trip. We simply don’t have the funds or resources to go on elaborate vacations. We take our RV, make our own food and spend $20 a night to camp. Most of the hikes were free and besides the diesel needed to fuel our truck, the trip was very budget conscience. It was, however, a time of incredible one on one with our kids and they enjoyed every minute.
In the end, it didn’t matter to them that we didn’t splurge to visit The Biltmore or go horseback riding or go to an amusement park. The children loved the blistering hikes to an obscure waterfall, exploring the Tallulah Gorge floor with dad, and the ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway taking in the breathtaking mountains and popcorn leaves full of brilliant fall colors. We laughed together, played games together, shared stories and talked about God’s amazing creation.
The children are growing up so quickly and God has given us these few special years to parent them and lead them. And while yes, the piles of laundry, the seemingly endless hours of homeschooling and the mom taxi to different events and activities seem to take its toll, there will soon be a time when the kids are gone doing their own life. How am I working now to disciple them and encourage them to grow in the Lord?
Timothy Paul Jones, in his blog post “Family, the Original Small Group Ministry” said, “In my research for the book Family Ministry Field Guide, I found that only one-third of churched parents read or discussed Scripture with their children at least once a week.” This statistic broke my heart. It does appear the average family turns discipleship completely over to the church or someone else to spiritually raise their children. Yet, Scripture is very clearly that this is our job as parents. For our family, vacation was a “time out” of sorts, a way to reconnect and make adjustments as necessary.
So, moms out there, don’t loose hope. The days may seem long and dreary, but rest assured that your mission field is well planted. Every moment we spend with our children fertilizes little seeds and will one day blossom into magnificent flowers.
Spend time bathing in prayer. Pray for your children and pray with your children. Read the Bible with them and have family devotions. Take them to church. Take vacations with them, no matter what your budget.
God knew what he was doing when he created families and he knew what he was doing when he placed us, the parents, as their main source of discipleship. Children are a special gift from God and He will help us cultivate them and raise them up. Enjoy these years. Just as our vacation was over in a flash, so too will our time raising our children. They will be grown and gone before we know it.
Read the rest of the above referenced blog here.
Powerful message Dana. We do only have a short time raising our children. With God we can raise them the right way.
I am glad that you had a family vacation; they are indeed important. We need to enjoy these times, I know I did when our son was small. They grow so fast.
First of all…Happy Anniversary. And second of all…as a mom with all four children grown, mommies…enjoy because the time passes quickly and when the time comes, dont fret over the empty nest because there is joy in parenting grown children. Such a joy and blessing to be called “Mom” no matter what age they become. Thanks for sharing Dana! 🙂