“5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”
Deuteronomy 6:5-9
The theme for this year is Kingdom Parenting. As I listen to the Pastoral team talk about what Kingdom Parenting means to them I can start to see the many different aspects of what makes Kingdom Parenting, Kingdom Parenting.
When I think of Kingdom Parenting I think of my Grandmother. It has nothing to do with her being a Grandmother but it has everything to do with how she lived her life.
My Grandmother is a tough lady. She would never let my brothers and I get away with anything growing up. She taught us how to clean the house, wash the dishes and sweep the floor. As a kid, this isn’t a hobby or activity of choice but when Grandma says to do something, you do it. Admittingly, we didn’t really do it with a cheerful heart but overtime I was able to see that her intentions weren’t malice, rather they were out of love.
As tough as my Grandmother is, she always had a soft spot for children and those who were less fortunate. She felt the call to start an orphanage in her later years of life (it’s crazy to think that just when you think you’re ready for retirement, God says I’m not done with you yet). As of today my Grandmother has had over 150 children come in and out of her orphanage. She has shared with me so many stories of God providing for her and the kids.
As if starting an orphanage wasn’t enough, my Grandmother recently (maybe in the last couple years) opened up a senior’s home for seniors who can’t take care of themselves. I respectfully told my Grandmother that she was a senior but she would respond with “God’s not done with me yet and if it’s His will it will be done.”
In between caring for orphans and seniors who can’t take care of themselves, my Grandmother still finds time to help those who are less fortunate. I remember visiting her and she hosted a fundraiser at the orphanage. I assumed that the fundraiser was for the orphanage as it makes total sense. My Grandmother was like a single mother trying to raise 28 kids at a time with 1 or 2 helpers that would come in to support. Of course you would have a fundraiser. I’d have two a month if I could.
But what surprised me about the fundraiser was that it wasn’t for the orphanage. It was for the poor people. My Grandmother told me that the kids have books and food that we give them but no one gives to the poor.
How can an orphanage raise money for the poor? What would make my Grandmother think about the less fortunate when she’s literally a part of the less fortunate?
I believe it has to do with verse 5 of our memory verse. “5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”
I believe it’s really hard to Genuinely Love God and Not Care for Others. It is a natural response to genuinely care for others when we genuinely love God. 1 John 3:17 (NIV) says “17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?”
As we begin the journey to understanding and living Kingdom Parenting, I believe we should set our course by starting with love: Genuinely Loving God. As we start with Genuinely Loving God, I believe God will send us in the direction of Caring for Others.
I can tell you with confidence that my Grandmother Genuinely Loves God and Genuinely Cares for Others. If you ask her children, grandchildren or even the people she cares for I’m sure they’ll say the same thing.
My prayer for you Lifespring is that the people you care for would say the same about you.
That You Genuinely Love God & Genuinely Care for Others.