Children of God

Proverbs 22:6 “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

 God is so good. His works and wonders never cease to amaze me. We left the house last night to attend a concert and dinner at church and I walked out the door with simple expectations of a nice time of fellowship, but by the time we’d made it home I was filled with awe at the presence of the Holy Spirit.

You can find our family at church almost every Sunday. Our kids know the drill. Babies go to the nursery, kids go to their classrooms and adults go to the sanctuary. I’m thankful for this separation so that I can actually enjoy my weekly chance to connect with God without the stress of being a mom, but this also means that I’m not usually privy to the ways my kids are being imprinted. So I found a great deal of satisfaction in my opportunity to sit beside my kids at church on Sunday night.

We arrived early and chose a row of chairs close to the stage. James sat on one end and I sat on the other, so that the kids were trapped between us. I could look down the row and see each little face.

When the music first started their postures straightened, their ears perked, and their eyes widened. As the second song began Josie pointed to one of the musicians and shouted, “I want that one!” Apparently she’d chosen him as her own. Throughout the concert she described him to me in detail, just to make sure it was clear which one she was talking about, and she continually insisted that he was her favorite. Jamie was as good as a two-year-old boy can be when he’s asked to sit still for an extended period of time. He enjoyed putting a dollar in the offering plate when it came around. Even Johnny, who had been all wiggles at first, sat still in my lap and gazed attentively at the quartet as they sung, save for the few times he glanced over my shoulder to admire the little 18 month old girl named Lily who was sitting in the next row. And when there was a short intermission Johnny asked for more music by pointing at the stage then clapping his hands and saying, “mah, mah!” He did this several times. Near the end of the concert the kids were restless so I took them over to a nearby field to play in the grass and an elderly church member approached us and handed out lollipops to the kids. It was all adorably cute to watch.

But the thing that struck me most powerfully was not the obvious cuteness on the surface, but it was what was happening deeper down inside. I was watching the Holy Spirit work in my children’s lives. There weren’t any doves descending from heaven and resting on their shoulders. No, but in a thousand subtle ways they were receiving Jesus’ message of love and grace. They were watching strong men use their gifts for God. They were hearing the name of Jesus being lifted up in praise. They were surrounded by fellow believers and feeling the love of a church family. They were saying prayers and giving offering. And, if nothing else, they were learning that church is a great place to meet cute boys and future girlfriends!

For now they are simply little by-standers. They’re still too young to fully understand the complex reasons behind the gathering and the singing and the praying. But someday very soon, before we even know it, they will be asking the tough questions and making the big decisions. I hope that they will carry positive feelings from experiences like this one around with them, somewhere back in their subconsciouses, and use those to help them find the right answers and make the right choices. It is my belief, my desire, and my most solemn prayer that through constant contact with the Holy Spirit my children will grow with the knowledge of Christ. I am proudly raising my children as children of God. This is the only thing in the wide world of parenting about which I can say I am absolutely sure I am doing right.