Parenting, Faith, And The Fight To Keep Going

Williams/Williams — The beginning of the family

Blessings-

I am sitting here writing. Typical early morning with coffee, candles, snoring dogs, and soft music. On my Facebook page are three kids, apparently dressed for a Halloween night. It’s been there-on that screen, for years.

Our blessings-we can miss them, even when they are staring at us in the face.

I don’t know what year it was, or even their ages. I am lousy with that-ages. They change every year! I do remember that season in my life. I was a father to three kids and a husband and I remember life was spinning and we were living from day to day. The end of that life pressure was decades away-decades.

…decades pass….

But decades pass and now looking back, it seems today it was just the day before yesterday. So fresh and with images stuck in my mind. This-today, was then.

Now, they have survived and made their own whirlwind lives. Proof of their existence is in the adults they grew into and married and birthed what seems like a squad of children. Loud, messy, cute as shit.

For you new parents, it will happen to you as well. Eventually, after decades, you become a consultant and advisor, when wanted and asked for-a life coach. You will have unseen hashmarks on your sleeve and awards on your heart. You will have messed up too-many times. But second, third, fifteenth tries are part of forgiveness and life. If you surrender and give up, everyone loses.

But, if we try….

But if we try to do it ourselves, sure, we might be okay. We might be able to raise a family, be loyal to our spouse, be honorable in our work. That’s what makes believing in Jesus so hard. The world keeps spinning, seemingly without end and without us being put down like a sick water buffalo. We are able to make it, a lot of times, make it pretty well and we see those who profess they are Christian, fail-sometimes miserably.

But when we fail as non-believers, we figure it was someone else’s cause and we stamp our feet and hold our breath and move on in our lives, walking with another limp-another scar, another reason to hate our life. Someone else did this to us, it wasn’t us. (God’s Metaphors For Our Freedom, Bought By His Son-Jesus | God’s Metaphors For His Freedom, Brought By His Son, Jesus)

…Satan….

And Satan smiles.

So, compare that scenario to one where you have a weak, bent, sometimes broken faith in a God who, we are told though old parchment letters, loves us so much He hung his son on a pole so He could die slowly for our sins He did, just for me-you. And when we have good times, He knows about them and when we have terrible, deal-breaking times, He stands even closer, holding us up even though we feel as if we are falling.

If you’ve read any of my stuff before, you know I like the story of the thief on the cross, dying with the carpenter’s kid. I am guessing all that man’s life was what we described above. He probably never had a good day, unless he was hurting someone else. Satan had both hands on that man’s soul, and he was going to die, well aware he did not deserve to live as mentioned in the last few words he spoke. He did everything to deserve what he was given. According to the world, he deserved the justice he got. But there was something he heard, felt, saw in the man between himself and another criminal who was taunting the carpenter’s kid, daring him to prove himself and order himself off the cross He was on. Something triggered in the thief, and he scolded the other, telling him they deserved to die for their crimes, but the guy between them, did nothing (Luke 23 NIV – Then the whole assembly rose and led – Bible Gateway.)

Then it happened.

The thief asked Jesus to remember him in heaven.

…no idea….

He, that thief who is us, had no idea what he did in that brief moment. In that simple statement, the angels in Heaven surely screamed.

He was in.

His simple act of faith, tattered, worn, questionable, was all he needed. He recognized who the man was. I am sure, he was not completely convinced. He had doubt. But when we talk about faith for the belief in Jesus, we only need the door to be a crack open.

That’s us.

So, as we tread along, allow God to be God and love you. Your spouse, your kids, people you don’t even know, will allow you to reflect God to others on their own cross, waiting to die.

Keep up the good fight.

It can be miserably hard to live in this life. But it can unbelievably valiant to do so as well. God has us, teaching us, loving us, encouraging us, listening to us. He never punishes, never yells, never is angry at us. Never are we alone. Keep up the good fight. Laugh, listen, keep your mouth shut when you need to, and love well.