Monday, May 31, 2010

{living a dream}

i was reading that devotional last night, with jim...it touched our hearts, again.

so i thought i'd share some sections of it...with you.

nothing fancy. just honesty unveiled:
Parenting is a lot of very hard and very tiring work. In the midst of the grind, we can forget the song of the barren couple that opens up for us entirely new horizons of insight and thanksgiving.

In reality, we're living a dream.


Kids are a tremendous blessing - flesh-covered miracles of God's gracious favour. But sometimes, when we get too close to the work, when we lose so much sleep, we become blind to children as blessings and see the only as burdens.


But where we see dirty diapers, the barren couple sees a living, breathing baby they get to clean.


Where our culture views as a "prisoner" a parent who quits her job to stay at home, the barren couple sees a home filled with laughter and the delight of their precious child's presence.


May we never lose sight of the true miracle: God has place a living, breathing human being in
our care!

The last thing I want to do is offend singles, but I stand behind what I said: there really is no joy like a family's joy. Certainly, singles can still have a rich, meaningful, and fulfilled life. They may well experience certain edges are carefree happiness married people will never know. But they will never experience the singular phenomenon of laughing with your child on the long journey we call parenting. When that laughter is born out of living together twenty-four hours a day, caring for them and sacrificing for them and delighting in them and disciplining them and getting angry at them and having them break your heart, melt your heart, and enlarge your heart - well, there really is nothing else like it.

There just isn't.


There is nowhere else on earth I would rather be than right here. There is no one else I'd rather be with than these children. For this one moment everything is just as it should be. It's perfect, and I'm content.


We are truly blessed.

No, we don't have perfect children. Sometimes, we don't even have pleasant children! But whenever we are tempted to complain, let's consider the ache of the childless couple.

i'm sure i'm not the only one who loses sight of the blessings i have...

those blessing who are refusing to eat what's in front of them, slamming doors, peeing on floors, asking for cuddles, and say "i wuv you"...

it's not all sunshine and lollipops in this home, but i love the times when it is. and during those times when my blessings aren't so pleasant, i try with.all.my.might. to remember the anguish we endured while trying to conceive them. the barren woman is oh so close to my heart...i ached with her for the years we tried...and i ache for her now, as i search for a quiet corner of my home to compose my thoughts.

i think i'll just sit here where i am...listening to their rendition of "you are my sunshine"...how fitting!


peace and blessings to you...

2 comments:

kelly ens said...

good read. thanks for sharing.

The W's said...

Thank you