When you look at your son, whats the first thing you notice? Maybe his adorable grin, his crinkly nose, his sense of humor that just won’t quit?.. All of these things make up who he is, but what about his story?

What is deep down inside his heart? What was he created for? Our children are given to us with a story inside their hearts already written…and they wait to be read..

I think alot of us have gotten it backwards. We think our children are given to us with blank sheets waiting for us to fill the pages..We fret about their education, their manners, their socialization, and we fill their schedules to the brim with sports and activities, all because the “world” has told us this is what our children need in order to become someone of importance.

Our first priority as Christian moms of boys is to make sure that we are taking the time to read our boy’s stories and not just raising them up to fit into this world’s mold. It’s so easy to get overwhelmed with what world tells us we need to do to to help our boys grow into men…But we need to ask ourselves if those things match the story that God has already written within our boy’s heart? Is those things drawing him closer to Christ or further away?

Are we spending more time worry about “what” our children will be instead of “who” they will become?

And who they will become depends on WHOSE reflection they are taught to mirror…Jesus or the worlds?

Moms of Boys will you join me on the adventure into your boys heart?

Will you join me in setting aside some time to pray and ask God how we can lay down the world’s agenda and what they say our boys “need”. And instead ask God to show us, His agenda for our boys lives…

That He would reveal to us their purpose, their calling, their gifts, their passion, their quirks, and their bents..

There is a great adventure written on the walls of our boys hearts. And its up to us as their moms to read it, nurture it and allow it to become that great adventure and mission God created it to be.

So moms of boys..Its time to go fix yourself a cup of kool-aid, grab your boy, and step into his world, his imagination, his wonder, his awe, his excitement, his laughter, his fear and his love…

Its there you will find his story..chapter one..

The sun hangs low in the cloud-filled sky; brilliant splashes of colors streaking while the sun starts to drift wearily towards its nighttime slumber.

We’ve been playing at the playground for an hour or so, and my boy has been poking around and shuffling feet as the hour has stretched thin and it is almost time to go. He doesn’t want to play with me today; he wants a friend all his own to chase after and skip with and tell little boy secrets with in the deep green cave of the spirally slide.  A few other friends have hurt his feelings lately, and he is feeling lonely, unliked, unwanted.

A few moments later we hear laughter, and another boy runs up; fellow momma in tow. She sits down with a weary sigh and a subdued expression a few feet away while her boy dashes to the slide, and my boy runs to me suddenly shy. He hides behind and peeks around, fear of actually acting on what he hoped for creeping in.  I tell him to go ask the other boys name, to see if he wants to play in the last few minutes we have. My boy hangs back, uncertain and afraid.

The other boy sees him; comes running up and says his name and says, “Do you wanna play?” with a huge grin. Almost instantly a smile stretches across my boy’s face and they are off and running, new best buddies bonded by a common goal and exuberance with life.

I watch the ease with which they play; unhindered by worry or social bounds or etiquette or rules. They laugh together, they exude joy together, they bring each other a little glimpse of companionship at just the right moment.

I think how I long to be courageous and free like that; to run unhindered into relationships and friendships and casual interactions with strangers all around, simply to bring joy to someone else’s day.

I glance down at the passage I’ve been meditating on that evening; talking about a harvest.

“Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.” ~John 4: 34-36

I stare at the words; scribbled on the page of my journal. I stare at the boys. And then I glance back at the other momma, alone and staring off into the distance.

I take a deep breath.

I start to get up.

I sit down again, and want my momma’s skirt to hide behind.

I tell myself another time, when I am more brave, more ready, dressed better, less tired.

Then I glance at the words again.

I finally get up with sweaty hands wiping nervously on shaky jean-clad legs, and walk over and say Hello.

I stumble over halting words to tell her how my son had been having a hard day, and that her son’s invitation had made his day suddenly brighter.  As I feel my face flushing red and think that surely my heart is going to pound out of my chest, I thank her for her son’s kind heart.

Her eyes start to well up; slow, fat tears threatening to spill over. I pause, suddenly sure that I am exactly where God wanted me to be. I ask if she is okay, and she smiles and tells me about the hard day she has had with feeling like all her efforts to teach her son kindness were going unnoticed. She tells me that she needed encouragement as a mother today. We sit and talk about faith and our boys and the sunset. With no expectations except to share love, share hope, share Jesus.

I think again on the harvest.  I know that I will most likely never see this woman again; but I start to see that she is a part of the harvest, ready for reaping all around me.

And I am the sower; no matter how ill prepared or scared or uncertain I feel. I just have to look around me, and see the need, and take that chance.

He will help me to be courageous and free.

Boy moms unite!

Erin and I are preparing for the M.O.B. Society meet-up tonight at the Relevant Conference!  If you are attending tonight READ. ON.  Cause girlfriend…you might win something!

Here’s how to enter our M.O.B. Meet-up Giveaways:

1. Come to the Meet-up.  We’ll officially start after the concert tonight (Friday) in the Ash Room.  You must be present to win.

2. Link up your blog here.  Every few minutes we will randomly choose a blog linked up here to win from several fabulous prizes!

Be there…or be square!