Parenting Points
Kids cannot wait to grow up. From countdowns to the next birthday to dreams of getting out of the house, kids want to rush into adulthood because they believe the grass is greener on the other side. However, the failure of the alluring promises of adulthood is clearly displayed in the popular slogan: “I can’t adult today.”
Adulting is overrated because with freedom comes the pressure of responsibility. It is fun to spend money however you want but making money to spend is more of an effort than anticipated. It is great to be able to have a family but with family comes the complexities of relationships and raising kids. Adulting comes with the constant challenge to deliver and perform. As adults, we dream of a simpler day and time. We think of our childhood as the glory days, yet we often wish that we could return to that place of rest, and affirmation we experienced as a kid. What if there was a place where we could go back?
When it comes to our faith, we take the performance-driven tools of adulting and seek to apply them to our relationship with Jesus. We launch Bible reading plans to accomplish daily reading habits. We set goals to pray more. We plan on having a daily family devotion with our kids. We commit to being more intentional to serve others. When February comes and our best-made plans are lost to the struggles of real life, where do we turn? Do we double-down our efforts to salvage a mediocre performance? Or do we realize Jesus didn’t call us to perform for Him but simply to be with Him? “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are” (1 John 3:1 ESV). The invitation from Jesus is to become a child again- to experience His love. We can crawl like a little child into the lap of our loving Father to draw deeper into our relationship with Him. God’s love for us is not based on our efforts, but Jesus’ effort for us at the cross.
As beloved children, we can lay down the pressure to perform. We can set aside the stress of adulting. We can rest in the arms of the One who is true love, and for some indescribable reason, He has decided to shower His love upon us.
–
Dr. Ben Birdsong
Missions Minister at Christ Church Birmingham
Writer and Speaker
