Do Little Boys Come With an Owner’s Manual?

By on May 9, 2011 in parables

The Parable of the Little Boy

When my husband reads bedtime stories to my son, he usually picks between two books, God Loves Me More Than That or The Big Red Tractor and the Little Village. Sometimes its because they are both are short and have great modern illustrations. Or it might be because they are both focused on boys. But really, it’s because of the message.

In God Loves Me More Than That a little boy discovers the breadth, depth and height of God’s love for him. I so want my son to know God’s true and real love for him. But I want my son to go even further than recognizing God’s love. I want him to realize that love and then return it to his Heavenly Father. The Big Red Tractor gives him action to do so.

It’s the story of a little town who works hard at farming. They have a big red tractor to help. But they don’t know that it can be turned on and self-propelled. So, they push it. It takes weeks to plow the field. One day the Farmer discovers the Owner’s Manual and reads it hungrily. He is shocked and surprised at the functionality of the tractor. He gets so excited he runs to the tractor and plows the field in one night!

The townspeople wake up to what they think is a miracle! They end up having more than enough food and are able to bless more villages from their crops. They become known as the most generous people in the whole world and give all the credit to the Owner’s Manual.

 

The Meaning of the Parable

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The Red Tractor is me. You. Our sons. The Owner’s Manual? God’s Word. The book explains that when we try to do things on our own, it never works out well. We become frustrated and tired. But when we use the Owner’s Manual God gave us and we rely on God’s Holy Spirit we will see miracles, blessings and power in our life!

And THIS! THIS! is what I want for my son! I want him to love God so much that he can’t help but hungrily eat up God’s Word, the Owner’s Manual to his life and use it to do the amazing things God has for him!

That’s why I teach him Bible verses at 2 years old. That’s why we read stories like the two I mentioned today. That’s why I make memory verse banners and put them on our stairs, in our playroom and on our fireplace. That’s why we listen to and sing scripture songs. So my son will know not only the love but the power of God in his life.

Now Make It Real

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My son has a big tractor trailer truck toy. It has flashing lights, a back end that moves up and down and tires that shake. It’s quite the boy toy. You just walk by that thing and it starts moving or flashing. But if it’s turned off, you can’t even get the wheels to turn. It won’t move an inch. It’s design is tied to its power. Just as our son’s true design is tied to the power of the Holy Spirit.

Help your son see this by pulling out his battery operated toys–or the lawnmower, tv or iPod. Let him try to use it with no power, no owner’s manual. See how hard it is to use, to get any joy out of. Then plug it in, turn it on or read the manual–and let them see the instant difference. You can talk about how God is their power and His Word their instruction manual. Encourage them to lean into that power and follow His instructions all the days of their lives.

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sweep the corners

By on April 13, 2011 in parables

Flour, milk, sugar, yeast.  Measure them out, son.

Exactness, fineness, sugar to sweeten.

Careful with the yeast- don’t drop it,

measure it…

carefully – thoughtfully.

“The kingdom of heaven is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened” -Matthew 13:33

Jesus was once a boy just like you.  In his home, they celebrated passover and the feast of the unleavened bread.  The leaven, or yeast- is a picture of sin-all that misses the mark of a Holy God.  A little bit of sin will spread, just like a little pinch of our yeast will spread through the dough we are making- it will spread and make a change in the dough.  Watch it son, as it bubbles, spreads, and the dough swells.  Just like a little bit of sin will seep through and change us and spread to all around.

Jesus was once a boy just like you.  In his house, leaven -yeast, was a picture of sin.  The people of his time, his earthly family, would celebrate the feast of the unleavened bread…and they would clean their houses, top to bottom- getting rid of all the leaven in the house.

Every last bit, son.  Take a light, look high, look low.  Under the bed, on the floor, up high on the shelf.  They would sweep it all out, not even a tiny bit could remain.

Let’s get ready to remember that our Christ is risen.  He paid the ultimate price for our sin.  Son, ask Jesus to help us sweep up all the leaven- the sin, from our hearts.  Every last bit, son.

Take a light, look high, look low.  Under the bed, on the floor, among our thoughts, before our eyes, in the things we laugh at, the things we listen to, the things we read.  High up on a shelf, sweep it all out, not even a tiny bit can remain.

We are mixing flour, sugar, milk- baking something good.  Stir in the yeast son, look at it and remember to throw out all the leaven in our hearts.

Let us remember that our Christ is risen.  Let’s ask Jesus to sweep all the corners of our hearts and make it a fit place for the King.

 

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mom of a prodigal

By on October 8, 2010 in a mother's heart, parables

I love my son.

Even as he is walking a path I don’t think is the best path.

He is what most would consider a prodigal son.

Luke 15:11-32

I won’t go into huge detail here ….

As his mother it is heart wrenching to see him go down the slippery slope he is going down.

As his mother I talk until I am talked out trying to reason with him….explain WHY his behavior isn’t okay.

“Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child” (Proverbs 22:15)

I still love him.

 I don’t LIKE what he puts us through or what he does.

 He is still my son.

How bad is it that there have been times when praying for him I prayed for God to call him home just so I wouldn’t have to worry anymore!

 Ultimately God is in control and has a plan for my son. It isn’t my plan and I need to trust that someday my son will use this time of his life to Glorify God.

~~FOOTNOTE~~

Since the original writing of this post my son has come home.  He has repented, got into a young adult homegroup, and is getting life on track.  God is Amazing!

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Recognizing and Calling Out Your Son’s Spiritual Gifts

By on August 12, 2010 in growing godly men, parables, The Word

Spiritual gifting.  You’ve probably heard about it.  You may have even taken a handy little inventory, meant to help you recognize your gifts.  You may have heard your son talk about learning about Spiritual Gifts in Sunday School.

We read in 1 Corinthians 12 that,

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.

The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ.”

It is through these verses that I have come to believe that it is of less importance what spiritual gift your son may have, but more how they use it.  God will gift us spiritually when we come to know Him–this is supernatural and not up to us but Him.  He will also gift our sons, when they come to a faith understanding of His sacrifice.

It is obvious through this verse that every gift is valuable in service to God.  Each is a part of the Body.  We can have full confidence and faith that each person is valuable to God.

One of my thoughts as a parent has been, is it important to cultivate a spiritual gift in our son or is it a gift simply given by the Lord fully intact and mature?  In my own questioning of this subject, I have come to ponder the Parable of the Talents, found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke.  Does this parable, talking about being wise with and growing what you’ve been given, apply to spiritual gifting?

What are your thoughts?  Do you have any extra insight or teaching to add to the conversation?  I’d love to hear your perspective, as this is something that each Christian faces in their walk with the Lord.  I’d like to think I’ll be able to spot the way the Lord has gifted them, and I want to be able to help recognize and call out those gifts in them.

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