The meats team made it home, and my daughter came bubbling in to tell us all! I think she will be moving very slowly today! I appreciate your keeping her in your prayers—I can’t imagine being the only driver and going from Denver to Wisconsin in one day and still be driving safely by the end of the day!
I recall some of the trips I took as a child. I was a member of a Christian youth singing group called Tioshpa Christian Singers—Tioshpa is a Sioux Indian word meaning “a gathering of the family”. We took off to tour a few churches for part of a week once a year. We had a wonderful time, and I think it was important to spend some time out from under mom and dad before I was on my own. Being out with a group of teens is part of growing up—it involves learning how to make wise decisions. I am grateful for my teen years, grateful for the decisions I made.
I don’t remember a day in my life when I did not believe in God. I went to church and was taught the Gospel from the beginning. In my junior high years a missionary from Bangladesh named Kathy Bleisie (I’m sorry, I don’t remember how to spell her name) talked to me; she told me that I was getting to an age where I needed to embrace the faith in which my parents raised me—and that I would have the choice of remaining faithful. She said that as children grow, there comes a time when they need to take over the responsibility for their walk with God. That day I went out to a swing hung in a tall oak tree and contemplated what that meant—and never looked back. I am grateful for that woman who God placed in my life. I am certain that I avoided a lot of rebellion, pain, and sorrow because of the decisions I made that day.
Now the question is, “How do we pass this torch onto our children?”
3 comments:
Glad B. has arrived safely. I know how much V. has enjoyed her times away with youth groups. As long as I can trust the adult supervision, I think it's a good thing to slowly release our hold on our teens.
That question about how to pass the faith on is such a good question. I think I'm learning as I go. One thing I have found with my kids as they get older is that I need to use the day to day conversation to re-inforce what I teach them about God. Living our faith is so often a very mundane, ordinary thing, so I think many lessos are found in situations like that.
Jean,
Thank you for sharing your 'testimony'.
Mine is very similiar. There must be something in the teaching at the good ole Lutheran Church....or in the wine :o)
But really...I jest when I say 'in the wine'...but if it is true what Lutherans and Catholics believe about the true body and blood of Christ in the sacraments...I think young believers have an extra 'blessing' there.
Do you know what I mean?
I also have come to believe that teens rebel against hypocrisy (sp). They watch their parents very closely and will be frustrated if our words do not match up with our actions.
Exposure to Godly influences (like you were)is also a huge blessing.
Just some thoughts...
Donna
Interesting thoughts, Donna and Kim. Passing on our faith to our children is so central to who we are, and yet it does not seem to be central in the the lives of many around us. I assume that many people's faith is still a part of their ancestors and not a part of them. One cannot pass on what one does not have. Hoever, just because a parent has faith does not guarantee the faith of his children.
There is a small book my pastor lent me; I'd have to dig for the title if anyone is interested. It is OOP. It was a rather small but deep book on how infant baptism assumes the Spirit is present and working in a child from early on. Being raised in a Christian home, the child never has to go through a stage of deciding if this faith is his or not--he has never known anything different. Infant baptism is compared to the Old Testament circumcision; it is simply a part of who he is. As parents it is important for us to be certain the child understands that he is not perfect or righteous in himself, which will lead him, when he is older, to confirm his faith and his need for a savior.
I do not wish to quibble over infant or adult baptism, but I find much of the theology of the Lutheran church to be a balm, allowing me to find peace in areas that other perspectives bring fear (i.e. the end times) or striving (i.e. works righteousness). There are many around me that do not hold my interpretation of scripture, and I do not want to argue over it. I am, however, thankful for my heritage.
Jean
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