Praying for Purity

By Nick (My Experience As...)

What could be more sweet, innocent, and pure than a newborn child?  It seems that purity starts being threatened shortly after that first breath though. 

We work to protect our children.  We baby proof houses by covering all the outlets, putting parent proof locks on cabinets and everything else short of wrapping the world in bubble wrap. Despite all our efforts, it isn’t long after the sweet little baby starts life that we make our first panicked trip to the ER because of a minor head wound.  Did you realize even a small cut on the face bleeds a LOT?  I didn’t know kids had so much blood in them.

Despite all our efforts to protect our kids they get hurt, which is especially scary when I think of how little is done to protect the purity of a child.  Even if you remove the smut and garbage from your house, it is everywhere around them. The safety of prime time TV disappeared when I was a kid.  Even the shows on popular kids’ stations are pushing the envelope. Not long ago a popular show decided to roll with it when the lead actress got pregnant, following on the heels of Juno they went for the pregnant teen story line. While the show was cancelled before following that story line, it is clear that the networks don’t see a problem and will gladly take that risk again.

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Salvation For the Next Generation

Updated on Monday, August 30, 2010 at 1:01PM by MAD21

[Editor's Note: This post is the second contribution to a wonderful series we are doing on Biblical virtues and praying for our children. I firmly believe that as parents, it is part of our responsibility, and an honor, to pray to our Father in heaven on behalf of our children. I pray you are blessed and encouraged by the words of these posts and that you will join me in my passion for growing strong, confident, loving, honorable and faithful children of God.]

By Nick (My Experience As...)

First let me say thank you for the opportunity. I used to write nearly every day but lately I have been so busy that I haven’t done any writing. This is helping me more than I can say.

If you know me then you can skip this paragraph, but if you don’t it might be helpful to get an idea of where I’m coming from.  I am a father to 4 children. I love them dearly and believe each to be a gift from God. I mean this quite literally as my wife had two miscarriages and a tubal before we had our first and we were both struggling with horrible depression until God spoke to us through our pastor.  This is a powerful story that I’d invite you to read on my blog. I’m also a youth pastor and have well over 50 students I pray for all the time. My heart breaks for most of them because I know they have heard the truth, but have not responded to it.

I believe we need to pray for our children daily. I don’t even mean our natural children, but all those of this generation of students.  I have made a strong effort to get the names of all of my students, even those who came once and haven’t been back, into the hands of people in my church.  I ask them to pray for the kids every day, and I know they are covered in prayers. We pray for protection, and peace. We ask for strength and wisdom. We seek blessing and perseverance on their behalf.

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Gone Before We Know It

By Michelle (Graceful, Faith in the Everyday)

Feet padding soft, silhouette standing bedside while storm crashes. He crawls in, asleep in seconds, arm flung over head, hair frizzled flat, thighs pale-moon soft. I watch him sleep, drinking in that bit of baby still left.

He cries while we watch Free Willy, worried about the whale -- brow crinkled, tears brimming lashes, mouth agape in wailing oh.

“We forget he’s still just five,” says Brad as I shush and console, stroke sunset curls, murmuring reassurances that Willy will indeed prevail.

It seems I’ve forgotten all along, so bent was I on surviving the trials of mothering infants and toddlers. And now, on the eve of too-late, I grip tight, finally not wanting to let go.

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Eating Out

By Michelle (Graceful, Faith in the Everyday)

We ate outside on the back patio last week. I didn't want to, but the kids love to eat outdoors when the weather gets warm. They beg and plead, and when I say no, they react like I’ve just announced that they'll never again eat ice cream for the rest of their lives.

I wanted to say no to supper on the patio. But I said yes instead.

Before you go thinking I'm the most boring, curmudgeonly mother in the world (which, frankly, I am), and wonder why in the world I wouldn't just have supper outside for crying out loud, let me explain.

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Balancing Life: A Father's Perspective

By Kevin (Shooting the Breeze)

Being a dad can be a balancing act sometimes.

Actually, it is not just a balancing sometimes; it is a balancing act ALL the time!  On any given day my attention is being pulled in at least four different directions: toward my wife, toward my children, toward my job and toward myself. 

All these aspects of my life are important BUT they are not of the same importance.  I have to choose how I prioritize these different important aspects of my life.  I must be living with the right priorities in place in order to find a happy balance in my life.

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