...so that they may encourage the young women to love their husbands, to love their children

Titus 2:4

  In Titus, the older women are encouraged to remind the younger women to love their husband and love their children.  We all need that reminder.

So here it is----Love your kids.  Embrace them.  That word EMBRACE  is a word I have latched onto in life.  EMBRACEIsn't it beautiful and cozy?  In the dictionary Embrace is defined like this:

1.  hold (someone) closely in one's arms, especially as a sign of affection.

or

2.  accept or support (a belief, theory, or change) willingly and enthusiastically.

To hold closely.  To accept.  To support.  Willingly and enthusiastically.  Argh.

Embracing our kids is pretty easy when they are all cuddly and newborn and their breath smells delicious. But what about when they are an obstinate 2 year old?

A mischievous 4 year old?A bossy and loud 6 year old?  And on and on.Embrace the way God made them.  Love your children.Embrace that they are the ones for you and your husband.  God picked you to be their parents.Receive them as the gift that they are with all their warts and quirks.  Receive.Embrace.  God created your kids with gifts and talents and warts and quirks.Become a student of your child and Embrace him.  Embrace how God made her.  Stop kicking against the goads, resisting the gift that they are.I had a friend challenge me once asking me if  I was receiving one of my kids as a gift or was I trying to change him?Hmmm.  Busted.  I realized I was I was trying to change him and not embrace the way God created him.Another time I was standing in the shower and was lamenting a time in one of our kid's early high school years.  I remember crying out to the Lord to change the situation.  Take it away.  I was refusing the gift that it was.  The gift that this son was.  I wanted it to be easy. And neat.  And clean.  I was turning away from the challenge.

I heard the Lord whispering,  Embrace it, Leslie.

What, Lord?  Embrace? Oh, yuck-ola, not this.

Yes, Leslie, this.  Embrace it.  Receive it.

This, Lord?  I think have a better idea of how this should go down.

Again, gently He asked me to embrace and receive this challenge  as a gift.

That word again.  Embrace.  So snuggly.  Warm.  But this was not a warm, snuggly event.  It had pokey edges that felt sharp and uncomfortable.  But at that point I realized that was what I was called to do, by FAITH.Embrace and receive.Your children are a gift from the LORD.  A gift.Rest in who they are.They are a masterpiece that is not yet finished, but hey, you are not either, are you?Embrace the season they are in …..whatever season that is…it will be over soon.Embrace the children God gave you.Embrace the snuggles. Embrace the trials.This idea of embracing the children God gave you is something you can discuss with  a mentor.  You know I love the idea of mentoring.  Your mentor can encourage you to see the long term, and have faith in what you can’t see.Also, she can encourage you to trust the Father with your children and she will remind you of the truth that you know.  She can encourage you to have faith..and remember what faith is…

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1

Things hoped for.  Things not seen.

A mentor helps put it in perspective.  God’s word puts it in perspective.

So today, can you wrap your arms around your kids, embrace them and receive the gifts that they are with open hands?   Embrace them, love your children- warts and all.  Do tell how you do this at your house.  I love hearing from you.  And could you pass this on to a mom that needs to be reminded? xo