by Rev Robert A Wendel
“You who are young make the most of your youth. Relish your youthful vigor. Follow the impulses of your heart. If something looks good to you, pursue it. But know also that not just anything goes. You have to answer to God for every last bit of it. Live footloose and fancy free. You won’t be young forever. Youth lasts about as long as smoke.” (Ecclesiastes 11:9-10 – Message Bible)
“Children are a heritage of the Lord: And the fruit of the womb in his reward. Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of (children). Here I am for those didst call me. (Psalm 127:3,5; I Kings 8:53 (KJV).
We learned to listen for his whistle. When we were wanted at home, Dad would simply stand on the back porch and whistle meaning we kids should return home quickly. That unique sound was one of the ways our family connected. The link between parents and children is an emotional one, best described as a lifelong roller-coaster ride full of highs and lows.
Every April, Time Magazine names that years 100 Most Influential People asking well known celebrities to write about each individual. Justin Timberlake wrote about Tiger Woods “Last year Tiger Woods and I spent some time together talking about being fathers.:
We talked about how we want our children to see us and how we have to balance our dedication to them with our completive drive. We wanted our children to watch us at our best. He said that he wanted his 10 and 11 year olds to see him win another Major (Tournament).
On April 14th, Tiger won his 15th Major Tournament (The Masters) in an amazing sports career comeback returning him to the top of pro-golf and allowing him to hug his two children with a sense of redeemed victorious joy.”
If you want to see parents’ pride in their children, watch any of the television reality shows spotlighting young people with surprising performing talent, hoping to become professional entertainers. Pride shows in the smiles of their parents, family and friends.
On the negative side, parents worry about where their children are and just what they’re up to. In Jesus’ life, we read about the time he was “lost in the Temple among the rabbi” (Luke 2:41-52). Or when his family wanted to speak to him fearing he “had gone mad” Jesus replied “Obedience to God is thicker than blood.” ( Mark 3:21-35 Message Bible).
Gen. Colin Powell told The Reader’s Digest “Reaching our children requires conviction that they are capable of success.” Jackie Kennedy Onassis told admirers “If you bungle raising your children, I don’t think whatever else you do matters very much.”