As parents, we always worry about our kids. We worry about them getting hurt, getting sick, making friends and how happy they are. We worry about today, tomorrow and we even worry about yesterday. We want our kids to grow up with great memories of their childhood and prepared to lead successful and fulfilling lives as adults. However, that is a daunting task, not easily accomplished, and sometimes, the stress and worry keeps me up at night. I have had nights when I just laid in bed thinking about what my kids would be like when they grow up. I think about how I interacted with them throughout the day, analyzing every moment almost as if I’m giving myself some sort of Daddy report card. Honestly, right now, I don’t know that I have given myself a passing grade. Don’t get me wrong, I love my kids and I try to be there for them all the time. I try to show them how much I love them in every moment. The problem is I lose my patience and yell at them sometimes. Sometimes I get so wrapped up in whatever I am doing that I don’t even look up when they say my name. Sometimes it takes me 45 seconds to get to them when they are crying and it should have only taken 30; that 15 seconds may be the catalyst that sends them to adulthood always feeling like they were never loved. O.K. that last one is just ridiculous; it’s true I do worry about it, but it’s completely insane.
I spend many nights beating myself up over everything that I did wrong as a parent that day, which leads me into a tailspin of worry and fear. I had one such night recently. I was up for hours worrying until finally, I think my brain just gave up and turned off. I was thinking about my two oldest sons and how they could feasibly be starting school next year, and immediately started worrying if they were ready: mentally, physically and socially. Once I got that ball rolling, I started worrying if they would be ready when it was time for middle school, high school, college, dating, getting a job, moving out, getting married and raising kids. My kids went from being four to being 40 in about 25 seconds. I started thinking about how I needed to make sure that I was preparing them for the future and then realized that I have no idea what the future holds. Although, given the current state of affairs, I must say I think the future is a pretty scary thought. How can I possibly prepare my kids for something that I don’t know and don’t understand? How can I teach them how to handle a time I don’t even know that I could handle right now? My mind was just reeling with question after question; worry after worry. I felt completely inadequate for the challenge that was before me and scared to death I wasn’t going to be able to do it. I was petrified I was going to send my children out into a world, where they would be lost and find themselves encompassed by darkness. All this while I’m lying in bed trying to go to sleep; talk about a lullaby.
The next day when I woke up the thoughts were still rolling through my head. Actually, the thoughts were stuck with me for a couple days. The intensity of the fear waned, but the worry was definitely still there. I just couldn’t shake the thought. How can I prepare my kids for the mysteries that lay ahead? How can I teach my kids to be good students, when I have no idea what they will be learning in 5 or 6 years? How can I teach my kids to be good husbands and fathers in a world that I’m sure will respect men even less than it does now? How can I teach my sons to be Godly men, when society is moving further and further away from God’s standard? That’s when it finally clicked for me; the key to it all was God’s standard.
It is natural for parents to worry about their kids. It’s normal for us to look at the unknown and wonder what it will bring. In fact, we have just gone though what is the most divisive election that I have ever seen. It would seem that our entire country is nervous about what the future holds. A future that none of us can possibly predict. I’m sure we would all love to get a play by play for the next 15-20 years so we would know exactly what to expect and could prepare ourselves accordingly. Unfortunately, we aren’t going to get that and we are stuck living in a world full of uncertainty. We are stuck wondering what kind of world we are going to be sending our kids into when they are adults. So, how can we hope to prepare ourselves and our kids for what would appear to be a scary and dark future?
God’s standard tells us how to live our lives. It tells us how to raise our kids, and where to place our hope. I will never know every struggle my kids will face or every situation they will encounter, but God does. I can prepare them for everything this world will throw at them by following God’s standard in how I raise them and teaching them to obey God’s standard in how they live their lives. If they are living a life that is dedicated to God then I can rest assured that God will provide and protect them no matter what they face in the darkness. If I teach them all God has instructed me then I know that they are prepared for a future that only God knows. If I spend my time today bringing my kids to God and instructing them to live a Godly life then I no longer have to worry about tomorrow. God even told us that we didn’t need to worry about tomorrow. “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matthew 6:34). In fact, in the Bible you find the phrases “do not worry,” “fear not,” and “do not be afraid” over and over again. I have heard people say that it is in the Bible 365 times, once for each day of the year; but, I haven’t actually researched this myself so I won’t claim that here. Regardless, it is stated many times and it is quite clear that God doesn’t want us to be afraid or worry. Do you think just maybe He has a reason for that? Perhaps, He is trying to remind us over and over that He is in control. If we are following His word and His blueprint, He will take care of us and protect us from the dangers of the world.
I know and understand when you try to imagine what the world will look like for your kids, it is a scary thought. We don’t like not knowing. We don’t like not being in control. We think about the future and our kids and we have a thousand questions: Will the world face nuclear war? Will my kids be safe? Will the economy be stable? Will my children find success? Will pollution leave the world uninhabitable? Will my sons be ready to face the world? What kind of challenges will people face in this future society? Will they be prepared for life’s struggles? Will the world be an even darker place than it is now? Will my kids be strong enough to fight the evil that permeates this broken world? You know all of these questions are valid and I don’t have the answers to them. Luckily, I happen to know someone that does. He knows everything about the past, and the future holds no mysteries for Him. He holds the power to save, provide and protect His children and He is the warrior that will conquer the evil of the world and bring light to the darkness. The All-Mighty God has given us the ultimate plan and all we have to do is follow it. Don’t worry about the future. Don’t fear for your children. Trust in God! Have faith in the Alpha and Omega!
