Taking Time

I had the opportunity to briefly attend a vigil with my son that was held for a young boy who was 16-years old and committed suicide. This hurt me to my heart. Not only did I feel the burden for his parents, but for the hundreds of teens that came together to celebrate this young boy's short life. You see, as a parent, I can't help but to think about what was he going through that he had made up in his mind his life was hopeless. I couldn't help but wonder if his mother or father noticed anything different in him, but decided that maybe it was just a phase he was going through. I couldn't help but wonder if in his daily routine something was "off", but nobody noticed or dared to say anything.

Being a mother of 3 teenagers myself, it's often easy to get into the busyness of life and dismiss unusual behavior as being "teenage stuff"; however, I'm challenged to do more. I'm challenged to sit in their "space" (which is really our space on loan) and talk to them when they don't feel like talking. I'm challenged to hug and kiss them when they think that it's "gross". I'm challenged to speak life into them when they don't want to hear it. I'm challenged to pray for them even when I'm at the peak of my frustration and on the verge of giving up.

If we want to see something different in this generation, we are ALL (with children or not) called to do something! I've seen enough of our young girls and boys giving in to society's way of reckless living. We've read about it, talked about it, shaken our heads about it, and seen movies about it, but now, it's time to change it. It's time to step up and live our lives worth something they can look up to and aspire to be. It's time to stop going to the club with them, cursing them out, drinking with them and start teaching them how to clean up after themselves, be disciplined and accept correction from authority when given. Teach them how to be men and women of integrity and character and how to love and respect those of the opposite sex. BUT, can we teach them what we have not mastered?



Heart Thought: Titus 2