I read something today in “The Bathtub is Overflowing, but I Feel Drained” by Lysa TerKeurst. “My children cannot really know Him as healer unless He has healed them in some way.”. We talked yesterday about fear. I have identified it – this is my greatest fear – that my children will “fall off the path” and not know Him in a passionate way as an adult. Yet, this statement is so true. If my kids do not go through hard times, how will they know Him to be all that they need? Unless they experience desperation for Him, how will they know that He can fill their hearts completely? Lysa goes on to say that we need to get out of God’s way sometimes. We need to allow hardships to come and then teach them how to turn to Jesus themselves.

Psalm 78:1 – 7 tells us how we can do that “telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and His strength and His wonderful works that He has done…that they may set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments.”

Sometimes this telling is very deliberate. We read the Word to them and talk about what it means. For often for me, it is deliberately spontaneous. Like a secret detective, I look for times when their spirit is open, and then share the goodness of the Lord with them. I talk to them on the way to school and on the way home from school. I talk to them while I make dinner and while cleaning up the dinner. Anytime I can tell them a story of the praises of God from something I got on sale that day to reconciliation with the neighbor, they all speak out the praises of God.

Tell your children or someone near to you today. Tell them of the strength and wonderful works of God. If you are new to this, it may feel weird at first, but just like everything else in life, the more you do it, the more natural it will feel!

P.S. Happy Birthday, Terri!

Lynn

One Comment

  1. Its so true as a parent I want to spare my boys any heartache, pain, hurts in life, but thats not reality, they have to know God for them, and see and feel God heard their crys and prays. Its very hard to get out of the way sometimes. RuthAnn had asked me one time about how one of my boys were doing, and I said great, but I don’t think at this point in his life doing what he knows is right,and she said “oh yes, well Terri he’s just building his testimony” well thats one way to look at it, as a parent I know once you’ve known the Lord and he has had you as his child, he won’t easily let you go and the good Holy Spirit keeps nudging the heart. I think I may try to find this book your reading sounds good.

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