Change
Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever......Hebrews 13:8
The world in which we live is changing, The June and Ward Cleaver families are harder and harder to find. Opie, Aunt Bea and Andy are becoming just memories. Happy Days are not always happy anymore. But one thing remains constant, the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ. His word tells us that He IS the same today as he was yesterday, last year, and 2000 years ago. He will never change, His Word will never change, his love for us will never change, and the way to HIM will never change.
I often think about my life growing up compared to my children's and grand-children's lives. No matter how hard I tried, no matter how many traditions I tried to carry into my family, no matter how many times I tried to bake just like mom baked, or sit down for family dinner, just like I did as a child.... I could never recreate the magic of my childhood. How could I create that exciting feeling of being able to eat dinner on a tv tray table in front of Walt Disney on Sunday nights when I am lucky just to get dinner on the stove most nights? How do I get that special bond with my kids that I had with my dad when we would sit together once a week and watch "Mannix" on our "one" tv if everyone is in a different room on different electronics? ..... I can't. But that can't stop me from starting new memories that MY kids will one day hold dear and precious. It took me a very long time, many , many years, to come to terms with the fact that they were MY childhood memories, and not my children's. Sadly, I missed out on so many opportunities to "create" memories for my children while trying to "re-create" my own.
Maybe it came from leaving home at the age of 18 and venturing across the country to go to college, never really returning to the point that I could call it "home" again. Marrying the love of my life and becoming a "military" wife meant never really planting roots- at least for many years. And during all those years I desperately tried to keep my memories alive, always falling short .... never finding that magic again.
I have seen the changes from from my childhood to my older children's and then again to my younger children and grandchildren's. It has really been a sad regression to watch over the years. It's with a heavy heart that I try and explain to my kids what life was like when I was growing up.... once I get past the "did they have color tv?" jokes! Life today stands as a stark reminder of the consequences of turning away from God and His laws. A reminder that sin is a slippery slope and that once you start down that road as a nation, it is near impossible to turn around. Gone are the days my children are safe waking around town by themselves, or playing hide and seek around the neighborhood at 10 o'clock at night. Gone is the simpler life of open doors and summer breezes , neighborhood yard sales and caroling at Christmas time. Replaced with fear of letting our children out of our site, keeping them always within safe distance. Fear of not knowing if your neighbor is a drug dealer or a child molester keeps the doors and windows locked and shut.
And then I remind myself of God's promise to all of us..
his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.........
Lamentations 3:22-23
And I know that though this world may change, and my children may never experience the magic of MY childhood, I can make sure they have their own magic. By magic I mean that wonderment of life that children have. Looking at life as a rose without the thorns, a utopian view of the world around us. We can still find the magic and the beauty in our world, we just have to look in different places. Sometimes We have to BE the beauty and the magic to others. I purpose in my life to always find the beauty around me, to alway seek out the magic. To be that ray of hope to those without hope, to show my children the goodness still in this world..... For as the Lord's love never cease, I pray neither does mine.
All of this can happen because my kids have something much more special than I ever had- a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. The King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. I grew up going to church because that was what we were supposed to do- Sundays and Holy Days. I grew up with a "head" knowledge of Jesus- but never a heart knowledge.When I finally got the "heart" knowledge, I became a new person.
Now my children have that knowledge and their life are His promises!
I vow to carry on the Magic and wonderment of life!
Excellent! When my Mom would share her stories of growing up I felt resentful as our childhood was chaotic. Fill with worry and anxiety living in dysfunction of my rooted from my alcoholic father. Her childhood sounded so perfect. Church and family and friends. Plenty to wear and to eat. Only when I started typing my Mom's life story did I realize a few things. They certainly had struggles. Growing up in the depression. Her parents were both good stewards so they were cushioned from such a harsh impact. Her Mom had 2 stillborn child full term back to back. She had to help her Mom get through that sadness. Her high school boyfriend committed suicide. Yet she spoke of her childhood as if it were magic. I wanted that. I think she spoke of the good times like going to church and having plenty of clothes because my grandmother was an excellent seamstress and Christmases that were special as a way to survive our reality. I now realize there was magic in my childhood also as I recall family trips to Bear Creek Lake and grocery store trips to Farm Fresh Open Air Market. We all have magic in our childhood and we all have heartache. It's deciding which one to think on that develops our mindset. Think on these things. Things which are good.
ReplyDeleteKathy I enjoy your blog entries. Please keep them coming.