You have go to be kidding me. Yet another day of wondering when the struggling will be over. How much longer do we have to go through this? Why can't they just understand what they are doing to themselves? Why do they have to walk right into the devil's traps?
Have you ever felt this way? I know I sure have. It blows. And just when you think that everything is turning around you get told that you are trying to hard. Or that it's not your fault. Why doesn't that help? The people we love seldom see just how much we want them to make good decisions that will draw them closer to God rather than farther away. It feels hopeless at times.
The truth is that hope is not as far away as we think. In the quiet of the day, when you find yourself feeling empty or heartbroken, stop. Just stop. Stop over thinking. Stop thinking worse case scenario. Stop allowing yourself to believe that you are losing the battle for your loved one.
God does not give up on us so why should we even entertain the idea of giving up on those we love.
There are times that I feel as though there is nothing left that I can do, but I am so wrong. I will never roll over and accept defeat. They mean too much to me. I will not just sit back and allow the enemy to take my children, wife, parents, whom ever, out of my life.
God has already given us the victory through Christ Jesus. The Lord says that He will never leave nor forsake us, that gives me hope. I am not alone. I am not abandoned. My savior is with me at all times, feeling my pain, taking my punishment, fighting for me and the ones I love.
Hope is not fleeting. It is right in front of us.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
I feel so alone
Do you ever find yourself sitting down and feeling empty? Or feeling like something is wrong inside of you but you don't know what it is?
There are times that I sit at my computer and ponder what my kids must be going through. Those thoughts often grow into thinking about what life would be like without them. Oh how I would hate to experience life again without my kids. Not a day goes by that I don't wish that time would slow down so that I could keep them a little longer.
But alas, they are growing up, and maybe what I feel inside is a sense of loss. It is not that I am actually losing them, but I am losing a certain part of our relationship. A day is coming when I will not see them everyday. A time is coming when I will have to phone them to make an appointment to see them. That is what I am not looking forward too. Thankfully there is more to the story.
I know that my relationship with my children is growing and evolving into something so much deeper than what we have ever had before. The scheduled time that we will have together will be worth putting my all into.
And then one day they will have children, and I will have grandchildren. My kids will learn at that moment just how much I love them. And that is when they will truly begin to see how much God loves them.
So maybe I am not alone. Maybe I am simply mourning the end of one phase of our relationship as I look forward to the next phase.
Loneliness can come for many reasons, but the best way to resolve that is to ask God for a renewal and a filling.
Don't walk alone. He is reaching out His hand to you. Ask Jesus to nurture you.
There are times that I sit at my computer and ponder what my kids must be going through. Those thoughts often grow into thinking about what life would be like without them. Oh how I would hate to experience life again without my kids. Not a day goes by that I don't wish that time would slow down so that I could keep them a little longer.
But alas, they are growing up, and maybe what I feel inside is a sense of loss. It is not that I am actually losing them, but I am losing a certain part of our relationship. A day is coming when I will not see them everyday. A time is coming when I will have to phone them to make an appointment to see them. That is what I am not looking forward too. Thankfully there is more to the story.
I know that my relationship with my children is growing and evolving into something so much deeper than what we have ever had before. The scheduled time that we will have together will be worth putting my all into.
And then one day they will have children, and I will have grandchildren. My kids will learn at that moment just how much I love them. And that is when they will truly begin to see how much God loves them.
So maybe I am not alone. Maybe I am simply mourning the end of one phase of our relationship as I look forward to the next phase.
Loneliness can come for many reasons, but the best way to resolve that is to ask God for a renewal and a filling.
Don't walk alone. He is reaching out His hand to you. Ask Jesus to nurture you.
One of the best visual representations I have ever seen of Christ loving us was a skit I saw on tangle.com. As a dad who loves his children with every ounce of his being I saw myself in the role of Jesus and my child is the one being played by the girl in the video.
I hope that you watch the video as I am going to attach a link to it right here, and as you do, remember that Jesus is fighting for you and your loved ones everyday. When we finally cry out to Him, we unleash a Holy anger against sin.
God HATES sin. Not because we commit it, but because it destroys us. It destroys our children. It destroys His children.
God wants you back.
http://www.tangle.com/view_video.php?viewkey=ee73e63418003b47d7d5
I hope that you watch the video as I am going to attach a link to it right here, and as you do, remember that Jesus is fighting for you and your loved ones everyday. When we finally cry out to Him, we unleash a Holy anger against sin.
God HATES sin. Not because we commit it, but because it destroys us. It destroys our children. It destroys His children.
God wants you back.
http://www.tangle.com/view_video.php?viewkey=ee73e63418003b47d7d5
Brokenness
You know what I am talking about. Your heart is aching and there seems to be nothing you can do about it. You have constant butterflies in your stomach and you try to stay focused on other things so that you are never alone with your thoughts.
I hate being in that place. Yet, as a father, it is a good place to be. I can certainly relate to my daughter when she says she feels empty and alone. I can respond with empathy to my son when he feels like his world is crumbling in on all sides.
I recently had an experience with God that has altered the way that I look at brokenness. As much as I would love to say that being broken is one of those things that I would eradicate if I had the chance, it is in that brokenness that I find God the Father.
To know that your child is suffering inside and there seems to be nothing you can do to help, is one of the many parts of parenting that I would like to do without. I want to be the hero in my child's life. I want to swoop in and save them from the evil that so prevails in today's culture, but I can't. I can not stop my babies from experiencing hurt and loneliness. However, God has a purpose in it all.
I have come to realize that my Father God allows me to hurt for my children so that I can feel what He feels in regards to us. I have spent many nights awake hurting for my cherished son and daughter. If I could suffer on their behalf so that they could simply enjoy being alive, I would. But that is not how it works.
Each of us must experience life on our own. It is a personal journey that is meant to bring us into worship of our God. To know that the Father has yearned for me as I yearn for my own children causes me to fall deeper in love with who He is.
Brokenness is not something that we are meant to experience alone. It is something that should bring us together. Out of brokenness and despair my family has grown. We look forward, together, for when we will all be made whole again. We all want to be full of life, purpose and joy.
I encourage you, be vulnerable with your kids. Make sure that you are being age appropriate, but vulnerable. Your kids need to know how much you long to have them full of peace, love and happiness. They need to know that they are not alone in their suffering as they grow from children into adults. They need to know they can always count on you to understand their needs and their longings. They want you to be a part of their lives.
So maybe being broken is not as bad as I had thought. If that is what it takes to understand God's love for His children then I am willing to go through it (hopefully I learn quickly).
Enjoy your children and be willing to walk with them when they are broken as the Father in heaven walks alongside of you.
I hate being in that place. Yet, as a father, it is a good place to be. I can certainly relate to my daughter when she says she feels empty and alone. I can respond with empathy to my son when he feels like his world is crumbling in on all sides.
I recently had an experience with God that has altered the way that I look at brokenness. As much as I would love to say that being broken is one of those things that I would eradicate if I had the chance, it is in that brokenness that I find God the Father.
To know that your child is suffering inside and there seems to be nothing you can do to help, is one of the many parts of parenting that I would like to do without. I want to be the hero in my child's life. I want to swoop in and save them from the evil that so prevails in today's culture, but I can't. I can not stop my babies from experiencing hurt and loneliness. However, God has a purpose in it all.
I have come to realize that my Father God allows me to hurt for my children so that I can feel what He feels in regards to us. I have spent many nights awake hurting for my cherished son and daughter. If I could suffer on their behalf so that they could simply enjoy being alive, I would. But that is not how it works.
Each of us must experience life on our own. It is a personal journey that is meant to bring us into worship of our God. To know that the Father has yearned for me as I yearn for my own children causes me to fall deeper in love with who He is.
Brokenness is not something that we are meant to experience alone. It is something that should bring us together. Out of brokenness and despair my family has grown. We look forward, together, for when we will all be made whole again. We all want to be full of life, purpose and joy.
I encourage you, be vulnerable with your kids. Make sure that you are being age appropriate, but vulnerable. Your kids need to know how much you long to have them full of peace, love and happiness. They need to know that they are not alone in their suffering as they grow from children into adults. They need to know they can always count on you to understand their needs and their longings. They want you to be a part of their lives.
So maybe being broken is not as bad as I had thought. If that is what it takes to understand God's love for His children then I am willing to go through it (hopefully I learn quickly).
Enjoy your children and be willing to walk with them when they are broken as the Father in heaven walks alongside of you.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Listening
I am not the greatest dad in the world, even though that is my goal. I have, however, learned quite a bit about being a dad from my kids.
I just recently came back from a father/daughter date that was awesome. I was able to hear my daughter tell me how important my opinion of her was. Talk about amazing.
As dads, we have such an important role to play in how our children view themselves. If we would only stop to listen to them talk, and I mean listen not wait for an opportunity to give our two bits, our kids would tell us exactly what they are needing from us.
My son just recently told his mom, my wife, that all he wants is a closer relationship with his dad. Needless to say that is now high on my priority list.
Our children look to us for guidance and unconditional love. They will feel that they can make it through anything if they believe that their parents will never reject them. If we truly listen to them, our kids will tell us everything that is going on in their lives in some form or fashion.
Are you willing to become the best listener your children will ever find? Are you willing to be the greatest servant they will ever meet? Strive to listen and to serve your children and they will always come back to you. That is what I have been learning recently.
With out a doubt, life is difficult at best, and sin offers our children a lot of escapes from what they are going through. Maybe, if we really listen and not judge, our children will look to us to teach them how to overcome their problems rather than just escape them.
God listens to His children cry out to Him. Then He comes in and gently lifts us back up, without scolding us. That is exactly what our children need from us.
Pray that God will give you ears to hear and eyes to see. Pray that your heart will be open to your children regardless of what is going on in their lives. Our children are not out to hurt us, they are looking for a place to belong.
Will they find that place with you?
I just recently came back from a father/daughter date that was awesome. I was able to hear my daughter tell me how important my opinion of her was. Talk about amazing.
As dads, we have such an important role to play in how our children view themselves. If we would only stop to listen to them talk, and I mean listen not wait for an opportunity to give our two bits, our kids would tell us exactly what they are needing from us.
My son just recently told his mom, my wife, that all he wants is a closer relationship with his dad. Needless to say that is now high on my priority list.
Our children look to us for guidance and unconditional love. They will feel that they can make it through anything if they believe that their parents will never reject them. If we truly listen to them, our kids will tell us everything that is going on in their lives in some form or fashion.
Are you willing to become the best listener your children will ever find? Are you willing to be the greatest servant they will ever meet? Strive to listen and to serve your children and they will always come back to you. That is what I have been learning recently.
With out a doubt, life is difficult at best, and sin offers our children a lot of escapes from what they are going through. Maybe, if we really listen and not judge, our children will look to us to teach them how to overcome their problems rather than just escape them.
God listens to His children cry out to Him. Then He comes in and gently lifts us back up, without scolding us. That is exactly what our children need from us.
Pray that God will give you ears to hear and eyes to see. Pray that your heart will be open to your children regardless of what is going on in their lives. Our children are not out to hurt us, they are looking for a place to belong.
Will they find that place with you?
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Life's struggles
Over the course of a person's life, we encounter all kinds of struggles, that goes without saying. Where do you turn during those struggles? Where can you turn?
Depending on the struggle, you have a variety of places you can go to. But in some situations, it may seem as though there is no where to turn. I mean, let's get serious, sometimes the problems you are facing seem so big that there is no where to turn.
Where do you turn if your child has been so hurt that they end up wanting to hurt themselves or want to just give up on life? Where do you go when your child is trying to block out all the thoughts and feelings out of their head's? Where do go when your sweet daughter or son is hurting and they can't let you in? What if your baby girl is making decisions that are self destructive just because she does not think that she deserves better. Or your son, whom you cherish, believes that he will grow up to be some kind of monster because of the things that were done to him under the care of someone he once considered family?
Have you ever felt as though you would snap if another person told you that you should just pray it through? I get that. I have been there, and at times still find myself there, but I know that our loving Father has given us the victory. He has given us the tools we need to do battle on behalf of our families. He has given us His Holy Spirit who guides us into real prayer, and real warfare.
Do not be deceived. God gave you your children as a reward. You can fight for them and you can win. Do not roll over and quit. That is what your enemy wants. But he will be crushed if we seek out our precious Jesus. For there IS power in the blood. There is victory through the cross.
Our Saviour lives and He will give you the victory. Let's journey together to find out how to battle for our families.
Depending on the struggle, you have a variety of places you can go to. But in some situations, it may seem as though there is no where to turn. I mean, let's get serious, sometimes the problems you are facing seem so big that there is no where to turn.
Where do you turn if your child has been so hurt that they end up wanting to hurt themselves or want to just give up on life? Where do you go when your child is trying to block out all the thoughts and feelings out of their head's? Where do go when your sweet daughter or son is hurting and they can't let you in? What if your baby girl is making decisions that are self destructive just because she does not think that she deserves better. Or your son, whom you cherish, believes that he will grow up to be some kind of monster because of the things that were done to him under the care of someone he once considered family?
Have you ever felt as though you would snap if another person told you that you should just pray it through? I get that. I have been there, and at times still find myself there, but I know that our loving Father has given us the victory. He has given us the tools we need to do battle on behalf of our families. He has given us His Holy Spirit who guides us into real prayer, and real warfare.
Do not be deceived. God gave you your children as a reward. You can fight for them and you can win. Do not roll over and quit. That is what your enemy wants. But he will be crushed if we seek out our precious Jesus. For there IS power in the blood. There is victory through the cross.
Our Saviour lives and He will give you the victory. Let's journey together to find out how to battle for our families.
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