The fact that life is hard was not a surprise to us when we entered adulthood.
Our parents—always honest, always loving—prepared us early in life for the difficult times ahead. Just as a conscientious mother dresses her son in a warm jacket, hat, and boots before letting him go out and play in the snow, so our parents prepared us for the dark, frigid days that we would face in adulthood. After fastening our feet with trust in a loving and sovereign God, our parents capped our heads with a biblical worldview, wrapped us in prayers, and sent us into the cold world outside.
Almost a decade-and-a-half later, a full 10-plus years in the world of grown-up life, Paige and I find ourselves continually grateful for the ways our parents prepared us for the bitter days of life's winters.
"Trust in the Lord," they would say with a smile.
"God is good," they would encourage.
Our parents—always honest, always loving—prepared us early in life for the difficult times ahead. Just as a conscientious mother dresses her son in a warm jacket, hat, and boots before letting him go out and play in the snow, so our parents prepared us for the dark, frigid days that we would face in adulthood. After fastening our feet with trust in a loving and sovereign God, our parents capped our heads with a biblical worldview, wrapped us in prayers, and sent us into the cold world outside.
Almost a decade-and-a-half later, a full 10-plus years in the world of grown-up life, Paige and I find ourselves continually grateful for the ways our parents prepared us for the bitter days of life's winters.
"Trust in the Lord," they would say with a smile.
"God is good," they would encourage.
"It builds character," they would remind.
But the best thing our parents ever told us was that we were sinners in need of a Savior.
By showing us Christ—in both Gospel words and their examples of Christlike-living—they gave us the greatest gift a parent could ever give their child. They gave us the Words of Life.
God saved both Paige and I through our parents' ministry to us in the home—through their prayers, their tears, and their words of Truth. They told us that life wouldn't be a walk in the park, and they were right. But they best prepared us for that reality by introducing us to Jesus Whose yoke is easy and Whose burden is light.
And by looking to Jesus through eyes of faith, given to us undeserving sinners by a God of abundant grace, we recognize that our suffering in this world is nothing compared to Christ's suffering on our behalf at the cross of Calvary. Because He suffered for us, our suffering is "light and momentary," as Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:17, and it is preparing us for a glorious eternity with our Savior.
So we thank the Lord for giving us parents who prepared us for the difficult days of life. And most of all, we thank God for giving us Jesus Christ, our eternal Hope.
~David
