Raising Children

“The goal of parenting isn’t to create perfect kids. It’s to point the kids to the perfect God.”

- Lindsey Bell

If you read Ken’s devotional earlier this week, you know we spent last week in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, scattering part of his mom’s ashes. It was a special time for Dad, the siblings and spouses to remember, celebrate and sit in sacred space as we honored the legacy of Mom Ingold.

We made our way to Goshen, Indiana, on Sunday night for a week-long family reunion. On Monday, our kids and grandkids flew in. As I write this, there are 23 of us (33 if all could be here) living in three houses on what has become known as the family “compound” here in the farm country of America’s heartland.

After the arrival of the last family member, we were all in our nieces’ great room, talking, laughing, eating and keeping an eye on teenagers and babies. I could hardly hear myself talk, let alone think, with the noise! Just for a minute, I paused and took in the room, eyeing Ken’s dad in the corner. The joy on his face was palpable! The family was together!

Our family isn’t perfect. We’ve fought hard for our relationships - difficult conversations, working through hurt, choosing to forgive. It isn’t easy, but it can be done when you’ve learned that none of us are perfect. Instead, we follow a perfect God. Coming from a family of faith, there is a legacy that our parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents have passed down to us. It is now our responsibility to pass it down to the next generations:

O God, you have taught me from my earliest childhood, and I constantly tell others about the wonderful things you do. Now that I am old and gray, do not abandon me, O God. Let me proclaim your power to this new generation, your mighty miracles to all who come after me.

- Psalm 71:17-18

You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.

- Deuteronomy 11:19

Maybe the legacy of faith begins with you! It is a huge responsibility, but when you follow Jesus closely, it naturally occurs.

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

- Galatians 5:22-23

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

- I Corinthians 13:4-7

Wait… look back over each word above. If one stands out - ie: patient, not easily angered - that probably is the Holy Spirit nudging you that it is an area that needs to be shaped under the Refiner’s fire.

When you are intentional about living your life, not perfectly, but following the characteristics of a perfect God, the legacy of faith begins!

Pastor Pam

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