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No Excuses

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Teach high school students and you will hear the most amazing excuses. I am almost awed by the creativity that some students use to explain their lack of responsibility. The operative word is almost. Having had four children navigate the precarious waters of high school has caused me to be a bit hardened to the myriad reasons that a class assignment is not complete or cannot be found to turn in for a grade.

We had a family birthday celebration this weekend and there were two situations with our grandchildren which caused me to realize that they are not that far removed from adolescent reasoning – or should I say adolescent lack of reasoning. Two year olds act without thinking. Fourteen year olds act without thinking. As a teacher and a parent I have found myself asking in a tone of frustration – “What were you thinking?” The truth is ….they weren’t thinking.

God has created us with an amazing capacity to think and understand. Yet it is not automatic. All healthy children are born with the potential to think.  Yet we know from recent brain reasearch that the reasoning capacity of humans is developing as they mature and in many individuals the ability to recognize cause and effect is not fully formed until a person is in their twenties. (Please don’t give in to depression!) That is why God designed families and why children have parents. Children need adults in their lives to set boundaries and explain the cause and effect of certain decisions. Humans are not like snakes or spiders who slither and crawl away soon after birth to fend for themselves. (If they didn’t, their parent might eat them!)

I am so blessed when I see parents of young children limit screen time. It is the rare child who will do this on their own. Once children get outside it is fun to see them play with Tonka trucks and climb trees. They use those large motor skills and gain strength in muscles besides their thumbs.

As children play outside and interact with the world around them they will start to see God’s power and divine nature expressed in creation. Don’t take excuses for not playing outside…unless the weather would lead to adverse cause and effect. As we train our children to think and reason, we are demonstrating God’s nature.

Romans 1:02

20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made,so that people are without excuse.

In God’s plan there are no excuses.

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Swords – Ready for Battle

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One of our daughters and son-in-law like to spread out gift giving with their four young children. They will open one present per child (or a group present, such as a game) one day at a time. There are several reasons they do this and one is so that each gift can be enjoyed by itself for a time. After participating in this celebration for several days last week, I saw that there was certainly merit in this approach.

It also led to one of the funniest gift opening situations I have witnessed in my 61 years. This particular evening after a lovely meal and story time, the three boys, aged 5, 3, and 2 were told to put on their pajamas and they would be able to open a present together. There was a rush upstairs to change and as they returned to the living room in front of the tree, a single, long, rectangular present lay wrapped and waiting.

The boys were told to open it together. Without hesitation – they tore the wrapping paper off and opened the box. I only wish I had a video of what happened next! They took the top off and inside were three styrofoam swords. There was a brief moment of recognition….and instantly each grabbed a sword and began “sword fighting” with their brothers. They really went at it! All three knew exactly what to do with their swords and they even had accompanying sound effects… ARGGHH!  I couldn’t stop laughing! Little boys love swords. These swords were from the Dollar Tree and may not last long, but they were a big hit. No one was injured and sword fights continued to break out the rest of our visit. Nana even engaged in some sparring herself!

Now I must confess that we avoided buying any guns or weapons when our children were little. We did not want to encourage aggressive behavior. Yet, it didn’t take long for them to find sticks, pieces of wood, and discarded cardboard from which to fashion a weapon. They even used dried stalks from Joe Pie weeds to “sword fight”.

It struck me how naturally these little boys took to their swords and were ready to fight imaginary battles with each other. It also led me to reflect on the real battles they will face throughout life. How can we prepare these little ones to face real battles? What will they do when they are faced with pressure to cheat or steal? What if they are challenged to pick on someone? How can we make sure that they will respond instantly  – and make the right choice?

Hebrews 4:11

12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.

This Bible verse draws an important analogy – God’s Word is the Sword of the Spirit.  If our children know God’s Word – if they memorize Bible verses and learn principles from Bible stories – these will equip them to respond to real life battles in positive ways. Joseph, Daniel, Esther, and Mary all responded to difficult situations and came out victorious. These people are great examples for our children since these people faced real life challenges.

Resolve this year to help your children be equipped with God’s Word.

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Emmanuel

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“Excited to continue our celebration of Immanuel, God with us, in the morning with my family.  I have found the past month to be so rich with moments to teach my little guys about Jesus, what happened at Christmas, and what that means for us in our lives today.  Jesus meets our deepest need (reconciliation with God) and takes care of our greatest problem (our personal sin).  Thank you, Jesus!”

I could find no better words than these from our daughter,  Abigail.  I especially like the way that she shares that it is an ongoing  conversation about Jesus,  Immanuel, God with us.

What a joy it is for us as grandparents to celebrate with our children and grandchildren the true meaning and purpose of Christmas. May God’s love, peace and joy fill you this Christmas season. Keep the celebration going.

Isaiah 7:14 – prophecy

14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Matthew 1:22-23 –

22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:   23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him ” Immanuel”[ (which means  “God with us”).

Merry Christmas!!!