As parents I think it is safe to say we all want a different life for our children, a better life. For some that might mean more money, more toys, a nicer home, or more opportunities. While I want my children to have all their needs met and even a few of their wants, when I think of a different and better life, that is not where my mind goes.
I want my children to be better people. Different people. "A people set apart", as the bible calls us to be. I want them to have characters after Gods and hearts so big they can't help but care for those around them. I want them to have a desire to serve others, one that aches in their very core and has to be answered. I want them to be content with what they have. To be thankful for it. I what them to be good, God fearing people. Honourable people. "Not of this world".
I don't want them to be caught up in the latest trend in video games or the newest action figure. I don't want them to be obsessed with having every new gadget or toy out there. I don't want them to judge others on what they may or may not have. I want them to understand there are things in this life that are so much more important.
This means that we have a lot of work to do. Trev and I are only two of the people they come in contact with. Two voices they hear, two examples they see. There are so many outside influences'. Classmates, teachers, doctors, friends, aunts and uncles, grandparents, television, music and on and on. Sometimes I feel like I'm fighting an uphill battle. Sometimes I feel like throwing up my hands and giving up. Some days I don't know where to start, which new habit or trait to address first. It seems for every step I make in the right direction there are 3 other influences' pulling them back.
The thing is - this is it. This is the time in their lives when their characters and thoughts and actions and personalities are forming. The habits they make now are the most important. While people can change later in life, it is a lot harder to do then just starting out as a certain type of person.
Anyone who has struggled with weight, or addiction, or a character flaw of any kind will tell you that it was a very hard thing to overcome. Once the habit is set it takes a lot of will and desire to change. Unfortunately sometimes if the person does manage to make the changes, and become that person they strive to be, their old habits pull them backward. They revert back to that old person. That person they desperately do not wish to be.
So how can I as a mother influence my children to be selfless, not materialistic, kind, loving, caring, good, intelligent people who love God with their whole heart and want to serve him? How can I accomplish all that when society is trying to make them into the exact opposite? I can't. There is no way that I, as one person can win out over all the other influences' in their lives. Not even Trev and I together can win this never ending battle. Thankfully I know someone bigger. Someone more powerful then all those outside influences'.
The beauty of having a loving, caring, faithful God is that we are never alone. We never have to do anything alone. Especially those impossible feats. We have a Lord and saviour who not only WILL help us, but who WANTS to help us. He wants everything for my children that I do. He wants to help me win the never ending battle, and raise my children to be "a people set apart". He wants them to have a different and better life.
"If the Lord is for me, who can be against me?" (Romans 8:31). I couldn't say it better. This is such a comfort! On days when I feel like the world is winning, like my kids are being yanked in a million wrong directions and like I just can't stop it, I can remember this verse and feel at peace. God wants a different and a better life for my children. God is on MY side! My God is with me, who can be against me?
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