Step by Step

Proverbs 22:6

Train a child in the way he should go,
and when he is old he will not turn from it.

During a recent visit to my mother’s house she made the comment, “Parents love their
children more than children love their parents.” I had to stop briefly and role that statement around in my head. After doing so, I came to the conclusion that this is an absolute truth. After all, parents create children out of love, to love and be loved.

Although I love my parents very much, I now have children of my own. My children have become the focus and have taken priority over my parents in my life. When we are first born everything we do revolves around our parents. When we have children of our own, everything we do suddenly revolves around them. We may try to deny this fact, but it can be no other way. All plans concern the children. Even plans with your spouse require a plan for the children first.

Our lives don’t begin this way. When we are first born all we know is a relationship with our parents. Our world is very small and rotates completely around our parents and their plans for our days. We know nothing different, so we fall into step with our parents as they lead us one step at a time down the path they fell best for us to follow.
In the timeline of our lives this moment in time is just a small dot at the very beginning of our lifeline. Sometime within the first two years of our lives we take our first steps. When we first begin walking we will often look down to see where we are placing our feet making sure that we do not step wrong. When we are not looking down we have our eyes on our parents not wanting them too far from our line of vision. After all they are guiding us, keeping us safe.

Our parents no longer need to hold our hands. They are no longer guiding the direction of every one of our steps. We begin gaining independence and what began as a slow crawl quickly transforms into a giggling, frantic run.

Running is usually our first act of defiance, testing the limits in a game of “catch me if you can”. We want to know our parents love us and want them to chase us. This game is a lot more fun for the child then the worried, protective and often frustrated parent. Time and again our parents will let us run as long as we are safe, only intervening when we have run so far off the path that we are now in danger.

As we proceed farther down the timeline of our lives we gain more and more independence creating lives of our own, making our own choices and decisions. Out of love our parents step aside allowing us to run ahead, only giving directions when asked. Quietly our parents watch, longing to be a part of our lives, yet knowing we not only need to run but we need to fly!

The roll of parents has taken on a new meaning and comfort can be found in Proverbs 22:6 Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. Being a parent never truly ends. Parents will always be a part of their children’s lives, because children will always fly home.

When we first come to a saving knowledge of Jesus and are reborn into a new relationship with God the Father we have the same experience. When our new relationship with God begins, everything we do revolves around God. We spend as much time with Him as possible, allowing Him to teach us a new way to walk. At first we stay very close letting God guide our steps. We bow our heads in prayer often and look up to the heavens for directions. We hold tight to God’s hand not wanting Him to be too far from our line of vision.

It doesn’t take long and we get a little too big for our britches, thinking we know all God has for us. We start to make plans and run ahead of God, taking things into our own hands. Psalm 119:105 reads, “Your word is a lamp onto my feet and a light onto my path.” The problem is that if we run too fast and too far we run ahead of the light God has used to light our path. When this happens we will trip, stub our toes and don’t see the danger that lies ahead.

The difference between God our Father and our earthly parents is God simply watches as we run, playing “catch me if you can”. He does not worry or get frustrated with us and more importantly He will not chase us. What God will do is wait on us. He waits patiently for us to trip and stub our toes knowing that we will return to Him once we realize the unlit path is too difficult to follow. Knowing that early in our relationship with Him, we were trained up in the way we should go and we will turn back to it.

Ultimately God will always love us more then we love Him. After all God created us out of love, to love and to be loved.