You are in mine and I am in yours

This morning I have been reading some blogs: I started here with Pen of a Wayfarer, then to my Brother in Christ who happens to be a pastor in Florida over here and lastly to a friend of a life giving friend on this page, which basically urged me to stop reading and get writing. I did finish reading this last post and then made my way to my computer. I found myself re-reading my last couple of posts and thought, "Wow is time marching on" which is true. I want to remember and I don't want to just let things pass by when people are impacting my life in a profound way and doing my best to humbly think that my presence in their lives is having a similar effect.

As believers in Jesus Christ, we have the Holy Spirit dwelling in us, therefore our Heavenly Father puts us in one another's lives to bless us. As I read in Jean's blog this morning:

"God wrote your story before you were conceived. Even before He spoke the universe into existence. Every “page” of your life — my life, any life — is part of His great unfolding plan. In our families, neighborhoods, communities, in all our coming and going, our life intersects thousands of other lives. Every time you or I interact with any soul — in the grocery store line, at the toll booth, in the doctor’s office, online — we become part of their story, and they become part of ours."

I thought, "Catherine, you need to acknowledge how the LORD is blessing you in the midst of the tremendous changes happening in your life." Life is constantly changing and I am indeed grateful that I have an Anchor for my soul, the Creator of the Universe, The Alpha and the Omega, the Author of my story who never changes.

It has been my privilege to have raised with Dan our three children, who are all adults, each attending college at the moment. Each one, loved, cared about and cherished. The effort, the struggle, and stick-to-itiveness of intentional parenting is still bearing fruit in my life.

Anitra is a young wife and mother of two small children who sought me out for encouragement in her parenting. Being with her and one of her little ones, I was reminded of how big mommy and daddy are in the life of small children. We are the most influential people in their lives. But children do not stay children for very long and it is only right that as they grow that not unlike John the Baptist we must decrease and the LORD Jesus must increase in their lives. This happens through EVERY stage of a child's development. It is good to be able to give Anitra the Big picture view of parenting, indeed we want to work our way out of a job by producing adults. That is not to say we cease being the mum and dad of Grace, Katie and Michael. We will always gratefully be so. Parents of young children train, teach, guide, direct, and discipline them because of the love that they have for their dear little loves. While we put in the effort to do these things, we then get to delight in them and enjoy their sweet company. Every time we meet together, I seem to be the one who is encouraged.

Jordan is a younger brother in Christ who asked me to tutor him and I am pretty sure that both of us are the students. It is not unlike when I was educating my own children at home, I learned so much during their growing up years. If you have been reading my blog for some time, you know that my philosophy of education can be pretty much summarized by the following quote from Plutarch:

“The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.”

The flicker of the spark was there when Jordan came to me but he has just needed some help with the kindling, where to find it and how to stack it to get the fire going. Right now, he is pursuing his education vigorously. It is a wonderful thing to be a part of and again, it a totally different way from being with Anitra, I am encouraged.  

This post is just a way of acknowledging that the LORD is still writing my story and that these are two of the dear ones that have become a part of mine and I have become a part of theirs. And I know that there are people reading this post who are in my story and please know that I thank the LORD that you are.

The One Constant

(not quite the conclusion of crossing the finish line)

Change ..... it is the one constant in our lives. Right now we are preparing for the wedding of our first born, Grace Joan to Austin Humbles. We are thrilled for her. And grateful for our future son-in-love. The majority of what I have posted about the end of this chapter in our lives, I wrote right around the time of their engagement. And I am so forward thinking at the point that it is hard to reflect back.
Today I delighted in being a distant witness to Michael picking out his class for the fall (he will attend Wheaton College in IL) and Katie helping him process through it and the two of them enjoying each other.  
We did something that I never thought I would get to do with my kids again and that was visit the library in our new town (minus Grace :(. The reason I got to go with them is due to the fact that Dan just got a new car and it is a stick. Michael does not drive a stick. Katie is just getting her feet wet behind the wheel, so the three of us were off to the library together. It did feel a bit nostalgic.

Unless I really find myself reflecting, the conclusion will not come until some time in September.  

Happy 4th of July to everyone. Remember Freedom is not free. Thousands have paid with their very lives for your freedom. Thank a Vet this week.

Our children are The Change
Today while watching our new president being sworn into office and giving his inaugural address, I thought about the campaign theme of Change Can Happen. Change.gov was the name of the website for now President Obama's transition project. Today's speech spelled it out a little bit more:

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn-out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

I believe it begins with individuals who have had a change of heart within families within community. We can not be a part of the we, if we as individual people have yet hope, unity of purpose, let go of resentment, grow up, stand up for others and lay down our lives, be the go getters and for us as Christians salt out of the salt shaker. I am resolved to be content at being an obscure laborer who is willing to see my children go further and higher. At the same time be willing to press on and see how far I can make it in the journey, do my best to never give up.

So that leads me to my children (K-Mac was the only commenter who wanted to hear about the children being gone) who have been gone for over a week and the oldest having been gone since the end of December. First, let's remember that they are young adults (almost 16, 17, and 19) and each of them wants to make a difference in the world. Until today, it hasn't been too quiet around here.

(did not finish this post after starting)

Back to the my children that are growing up so quickly before my eyes. There is a song by Jon Forman "C'mon, C'mon" and there is a line that says, "let's not be our parents." It is my desire that my children will go up further and higher than their dad and me. Each one will make an impact in their community and be a part of the change in this country by changing and growing more and more into the likeness of Christ. I am not specifically talking about the political landscape or policy making, although I will not count those out. However, I hope and pray for them to each influence the culture for the glory of God.

In the time that my kids were gone. I prayed for them and some of you may be surprised, that I did not pine after them even though I missed them. This is a strategic time in their lives as we "shoot out these arrows of ours" (as Gregg Harris likes to put it). Each of them have been through test launches and they are looking good and continue to prepared for their final launches. Not exactly sure when that will be for each of them but we know that is closer than we think.

Relationships with our children change as they grow up. When we resist the change the pain is greater. I have delighted in walking through life with them all through their childhood. In some ways people may think that the parents who educated their children at home have a harder time letting go, but I am doing what I have done through the years, embraced the change because it will help me to continue on my own journey in this life. By no means am I doing it with ease. I fumble, fall on my face but I get up again, often with one of my young adults helping me brush myself off and telling me, "it's ok mum."

So I want my kids to sing it out:

So c'mon, c'mon, c'mon!
Let's not be our parents.
Well c'mon, c'mon, c'mon!
Let's follow this through.
Oh c'mon, c'mon, c'mon!
Everything's waiting.
We will rise with the wings of the dawn,
When everything's new.
Everything's new.

That they would not just do better than us but that they will be better than us. To Grace, Katie and Michael I say stand on my shoulders.

The seasons of parenting
It occurred to me the other day that I have not blogged about any changes we have been going through lately. These are numerous but I just want to focus on one: Children growing up. In February of this year our oldest daughter Grace traveled to the Netherlands to go to L'abri as a student. It was a delightful experience for her going over there with two of her very good friends. The director asked Grace if she would return for the summer session as a helper and she absolutely loved it.
This daughter of ours is vibrant, strong, thoughtful (and full of deep thoughts) and a delight to her parents. She is also no longer a child. Grace will always be my daughter but she is now a woman. In all honesty, re-entry has been a challenge for me. This is the transitional time of parenting that is crucial to maintaining a relationship and allowing it to develop in a way I am not really sure about. Even though she is not totally out on her own, she has been expanding her horizons.
It seems like labor has made its appearance again and this time I don't have to take it laying down but can walk, breath, laugh, cry and rejoice in my child who has become a woman.

Winds of Change blowing through our "home"
We really didn't start sending our children off anywhere without us until they were 15. Grace has spent time away from home each summer since then and now she is on tour with Communicators for Christ (checkout the website to see when they will be in your area). It was wonderful to have a weekend in TN, getting to meet most of the other families and sending our young adults off with blessings (that was just over 2 weeks ago). Grace will be gone basically for the rest of 2007. WOW
Katie has spent the better part of a month at Patrick Henry College working on the production team for Advent Film Group (you can check out their website too). This opportunity came up right before we moved. So, we were not really prepared to send her off, but Katie was definitely up for the challenge.
The thing is we have never looked to get rid of our kids during the summertime. It is during those times that are really trying, that we need to have our kids with us, work through and help them get through the growing process. In the short run it is probably easier to just send the trying teenagers and let other people deal with them, or perhaps you send them off to do educational things and that's really "admirable."
Now, the truth is our girls have been ready to test their wings. It is right for them to go out and be willing to place themselves under someone else and learn from someone other than their parents without becoming confused. As a dear friend of ours, David Moon said, we have discipled our kids and they are now ready to be salt and light in the world. And they both will be coming back to the nest for more preparation.
Needless to say, it has been interesting and quieter around here without Grace and Katie and for me to be outnumbered by the men. We are enjoying our time with Michael and all three of us miss them but we have peace about what the girls are doing, we pray for them, talk on the phone here and there and exchange the occasional email. I am sure there is more to it than this but I just wanted you to see the affects of the wind not experience its depth. (besides that is really hard to describe.)

Increasing NOT decreasing

One of the most consistent things in life is change. This past weekend we sent our oldest out of the next to test her wings for the next 4 months or so. Strangely enough we have peace about this next chapter of our life. For our family it is not just a change in Grace's life but in our family's life. For the last 17 plus years, we have been walking through life together and the last 4 years traveling and living in places where at first all we had was each other.
In anticipation of Grace going on tour with Communicators for Christ, I prayed regularly to be able to release her with a blessing and at times I thought about missing her and that our family was decreasing.
Then we gathered with almost all of the families who were sending their children off on this wonderful journey that lay before them. On Sunday we had the family commissioning where we had the opportunity to give a charge to our child and the team. Leading up to this moment, I thought our family size decreasing with Grace's absence and instead what we gained were 12 other families, brothers and sisters in Christ who are with us during this season of our pilgrim journey.

As each family shared, I saw a true demonstration of one body and many parts. Of one family, The Moons taking many young people on a journey, yet each one of us in many ways are in for the long haul as well. Laughter, tears, and Cheers (for the Currans) throughout this commissioning, it was an intimate time. Many things I am storing up in my heart and there they will stay. I will however say this, our world has grown larger and as we have gotten to know some of the families better this weekend, we definitely look forward to encouraging one another and growing through this experience together.
Each family revealed its unique personality through their words of encouragement and warning. The common thread in every charge was blessing. Most of the dads showed great emotion, every dad in one way or another said, "son or daughter, you are ready, we have poured ourselves into you and now you are ready to go forth and be poured out for others."
I walked away from the experience drained in one way and filled in another. All these brothers and sisters in Christ were now being assemble and linked together through CFC. Our kids are now a team and so are we. We were not losing our daughter but gaining new friendships and welcoming new brothers and sisters into our lives.
So to each of the parents of the 2007 CFC Interns I say, thank you for investing in your children, raising them in the fear of the Lord, loving them the way Jesus loves us and directing them to the one True God.

To each of the Interns, I say to you with the apostle Paul: (from Romans 12)

"Let love be without hypocrisy Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind in diligence,fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints"

Know that all the parents will be praying for each and every one of you.

Looking forward to what the Lord will be doing throughout the season.

Pax Vobiscum,
CM