Is it possible that just like we’ve done with the gospel and God’s intentions for us, we’ve made the parenting story a lot smaller than it was meant to be, a lot smaller than it can be? What if we are being invited into something wildly larger in our parenting? Even if it could get a bit more uncomfortable.
What if it has nothing to do with control and everything to do with relationship and influence? What if it has everything to do with nurturing our kids, their belovedness, and teaching them how to manage their God given freedoms?
It’s not my job to make my kids do what is right. It doesn’t work anyway, right? I mean, if we’re honest, we think we’re controlling that, but we’re not. It’s my job to give them a relational value system to base their decisions on. Because here’s the thing, every single thing we talk about regarding orientation and the Larger Story is the same story our kids are living in. So right now, this is a gift to have this view from up here, to see what we are learning to see, so that we can go out of this place offering our children what God offers us.
For every single thing that comes against us, the two realms, the two kingdoms, the wounds we have, that things that thwart our glory, that keep us living small – this is all happening to our children, too. It’s exactly the same story they are living in. But what is also beautiful is that they’re living in the exact same limitless invitation that God gives us, He also gives the same for our kids. They get to participate. We get to help them participate. We get to help them learn to participate in collaborating with God in that crazy, vibrant life in the context of ridiculous love. This looks like embracing this all in with and for our children no matter what. That’s what makes us whole-hearted life-giving moms, not perfect ones.
