Where do those little years go?
They pass by so fast, and in what feels like a blink of an eye, we now have a young adult (s) on our hands.
But I have to say that one of the saddest things that I see happen is that once a child graduates from high school I hear parents say to them "you are on your own".
Now I am definitely not talking about letting them have responsibility and all that other good stuff that comes with adulthood, I am definitely for that! But a "now- that-you-are-of-age-I-have-washed-my-hands-completely-of-you" mentality. That just breaks my heart.
I have especially seen with young girls just how fatal that can be. Several of my friends growing up lived wild lifestyles leading them into harmful relationships, promiscuity, dangerous situations and so forth. It is actually very common.
But I am absolutely an advocate for supporting and walking along side your adult children. My view is that they will always need you to some degree and you need to be there to give them that wise counsel, to give them a safe place, and give them unconditional love and love on their children. The world will throw what it can at them but parents can always be a safeplace for them, to rest upon as they faithfully and continually lead them to the Lord, never giving up on them.
There will be times a parent will have to demonstrate tough love to a child for their own good. But when that time comes may the Lord give them wisdom to make hard judgment calls and give them understanding. My prayer is that parents would have the courage to do the right thing, even with their adult children and not be swayed by a culture that does not have the time and would rather not.
I don't think the influence of a parent ever ends until the day that we die. We can always be an example of love and hope. Surely our relationships will change over time, the will leave and cleave, they might move far away for a time or permanently. But what I have found is that the older I get the more I realize how much my mothers influence still impacts me greatly.
Lord, please help us to raise our adult children with Your wisdom and discernment. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear what lies in front of them. Help our young adults to trust and seek after our counsel and the counsel of other wise advisors. Keep them safe from harm and from the devil's trap. Keep their feet on your paths of righteousness all the days of their lives. We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
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