The people in your life that tend to bring you the most tears can also be the ones that make you smile the most. My kiddos are those very people.Children bring tears to the eyes of their parents as they progress through life, explore the world around them, and make decisions that make them (tears of joy) or break them (tears of sorrow).
Five children in one household wasn't always pie. Those make or break moments were very real and very emotional.
I had make or break moments in my own life growing up. On so many paths I seemed to chose the "break me" moments more often than the "make me" moments.
Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
(Proverbs 22:6)
I was "raised" in church, but rather than embrace what the men and women of God taught me about the Lord, I focused on how I was done wrong, what I didn't get, ways I was let down, compared the lives of others with what I didn't experience, and how I was hurt. I chose to look at and dwell on the negativity surrounding me over the moments of glory God did make present in one way or another. I ran from the answer rather than to it. I continued to run from God right through into my twenties.
His word stood strong and faithful though. Although I don't consider myself "old" quite yet, I'm certainly older... and strive daily to keep myself rooted into the lifeline that the blood of Jesus provided for me the day He shed His blood on Calvary. His sacrifice wiped away every poor path I chose, casting it into the sea of forgetfulness (Micah 7:19).
I still fail. I still fall short of the glory of God. I stumble and no doubt cause the Lord shame. But then comes Jesus. He sees my heart. He sees my tears of sorrow. He is there to comfort us when we go running to Him with our faults and pleas for mercy.
The moments of torment in my life became moments of victory. The moments of sadness turned to joy. Trials are now testimonies. The more we go through the bigger the chance we have to grow closer to God. If our eyes stay on Him despite the circumstance, our troubles in the valley become triumph on the mountaintop... He WILL use it for HIS glory!
Knowing where I came from, and the acceptance the Lord gave me with wide open arms after all the sorrow I surely caused Him... I must simply trust that this momma's prayers will urge the Lord to continue His whispers into the hearts of my children.
Plant seeds into the hearts of your loved ones, then hand them over to God, and let Him see to the watering, making sure His increase is made known (1 Corinthians 3:6). Be encouraged if you have children that keep you on your knees in prayer... after all, He saved a wretch like me, and God is by no means partial to us depending on who we are or what our mistakes and past may be (Romans 2:11)! In the meantime, seek Him to guide you for your soul's sake and knowledge, that you may be a shining light and example for those lost loved ones in your life.
