Toddlers and God

Toddlers and God

I think toddlers and preschoolers are God's way of giving us a little glimpse into what His existence is like on a daily basis. Let's think for a moment about how toddlers behave. Toddlers think that the world revolves around them and they get up each day expecting their needs and oftentimes their wants to be met. And not only met, but met in a prompt manner. Immediately is more like it. And if they don't get what they want quickly, they throw dramatic tantrums and tell their parents they don't love them anymore . . . . are you starting to see the connection?

Many times when I am correcting my sons for not obeying me, immediately, I think about how patient God is and how many times I have made him wait for my obedience. I consider how I want my children to follow my directions the FIRST time they are given because they should know by now I am only trying to keep them safe, save them from pain or bless them, right? They should trust me by now, right? They should believe that I have their best interests at heart! After all I've done for them! The nerve of them to disobey . . .

Then there are those times when one of my children wants another television show or a second or third bowl of ice cream and I have to say no. I want them to say, “Okay, mother, I understand that research shows that too much television and ice cream is bad for me. The Bible says to honor my mother and father. No problem. Would you like me to go clean my room and read my Bible instead?” Don't laugh. I can dream. But we all know that kids want what they want and when they don't get it, parents are the bad guys. “You're mean!” or “It's not fair!”, or my all-time favorite, “I don't love you anymore” are common responses.

Don't we do these same things to God? We get up in the morning and we know He is our provider so we simply expect our needs to be met. The truth is we often expect all of our wants to be met as well and when they aren't we shake our fists at the sky and say things like, “You're mean!”, or “I don't love you anymore!” or “It's not fair!” We figure God is a mean God, withholding blessings from us when we don't get that job we wanted. We feel life is unfair when a loved one dies, or a baby is miscarried. We withdraw from God and take our love with us when we are hurting and we feel He doesn't seem to care about it because He doesn't choose to solve our problem the way we envisioned it would be solved.

I am not picking on anyone here. I have personally felt all of these emotions and I am sad to say I have been a full-grown toddler on and off for most of my Christian walk. So what is the solution? I am not sure because I know a lot of this is because we have a sin nature and we are prone to be selfish and self-centered. But, I think we need to know what our Bible says about God. He loved us first. He sent His best to die for us. When we dwell on these things, we remember His character and we know He wants what is best and sees what we cannot see and that all things work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose.

So when I am dealing with my young children this week, and hopefully all of the weeks to come, I pray I remember my own faults. And instead of expecting them to do what I say immediately, I hope I will lovingly remind them to obey so that they may receive the blessing that comes from honoring their mother and father. May I be a mother worthy of being honored. I hope I will stand in the face of “I don't love you anymore” and tell them I will love them forever and I forgive them for saying that to me, but mommy only wants the best for them. And when they don't get something they wanted, or someone they love is hurting or dies and they don't understand, or when God's purpose or plan seems hidden from their view and He seems like a mean God, I pray they will come to me and I can comfort them and remind them who God is because I know it for myself.

Train Up A Child

Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go (and in keeping with his individual gift or bent), and when he is old he will not depart from it. I read this today and I had a couple of different thoughts. I am no theologian, but here we go. First, I love what the Amplified Bible adds here. It says to train your child up in the way he should go, IN KEEPING WITH HIS INDIVIDUAL GIFT OR BENT. So training your child up is not just training them in the things of the Lord, though that comes first--knowing Jesus, reading the Bible, going to church, etc. It also has to do with training them according to their individual gifts. If you don't know your child's "gift package" ask God to show you what it is and then encourage it and help them get trained up in it. Sometimes I think we forget that children are individuals with very specific talents and God wants us, as parents, to train them up. Second, and last thought on this verse for now is that I have always made a note of the fact that it says train up a child . . . and when he is OLD he will not depart from it. Interesting, huh? Sometimes I think people wonder if their teenagers or young adults will ever turn around. I think this scripture can bring hope in those situations where they seem really lost. It says if you trained them up as a child, when they are OLD they will not depart from it. I am not sure how OLD they meant, but I have always noticed that it doesn't say< "when they are a teenager they will not depart from it." That is not to say that all teens depart from God, just to say that not all who do are lost forever. Amen?