Our Kids are PEOPLE!

     Duh! Right?  Our 3 are all under 2 years apart.  People often refer to that as stair stepped.  Not as close as some kids but still each time I was pregnant and having a new baby the old one was still a baby himself!  "Old one" hahah.  Anyways.  I have been a parent for 7 years, so long and so short at the same time. All my babies are now self sufficient little people.  They dress themselves, feed them selves, walk themselves, go to the bathroom all on their own and many more things that they used to need me for. 
     So recognizing that my babies are people has been a gradual becoming more natural as they act like little people and not just pooping, creaming adorable blobs!  God has challenged me lately with a very simple but profound scripture application shift.  That was a mouthful.  Basically He has challenged my perspective on my kids and the bible and how they interact.  I have read and applied God's word for years but as I see my babies as people, so much more of scripture applies beyond "train them up in the way they should go!"  I no longer hunt for "parenting verses" the whole thing applies!  That's exciting. The first time I really got this concept  was this the scripture Galatians 6:1-2.  This morning I was in Col. 1 and  thought I would pass on what I found and how it relates to being a Mom or Dad! 

Colossians 1:28-29 ESV

28 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. 29 For this I toil, struggling with all His energy that He powerfully works within me.

     OK, "everyone" includes my 7, 5, and 3 year old!  Our job is obviously to teach our kids but not just life stuff "life and godliness."  Here's were is gets fun toil means to labor, to feel fatigue, and work hard.  Parenting 101!  Struggling means to complete for a prize, accomplish something. So often we get confused as parents.  We think that our toil and struggle should end in the prize we want.  Well behaved kids that make us look good.  Such a shallow goal doesn't always get to the place that God wants to work.  God is interested in our kids hearts.  So we do the work, we toil, we struggle, we get real with God about our own sin and we infuse scripture into our own lives so that we can teach what we have graciously been taught.  When we first and consistently go to God about our own issues then He teaches us how to proclaim, warn and even struggle and toil well. He has it all covered.  God is all about our proximity to Him.  We can read all the parenting books in the world but if we aren't getting raw, real and close to God and staying there we will not have what we need to teach these kids to be mature in Christ one day. 

     So, that's it for now.  I'm sure I will come across another familiar scripture that I never thought to apply to parenting and be to excited about it to not share!  Blessings on your walks with God and parenting!  We can do this people He works in us to be sufficient for the job he has called us to! 

God has completely change my relationship with this one!
I'm enjoying who he is even in his less mature state!