little world changers

sunday at church our pastor gave a really great sermon about the influence a mother has in her children's lives.

i was all over that sermon.
so much so that i just listened to it again.

it's so jam packed with amazing that the link to it is included at the end of this blog. so when you're done reading this, go listen.

the part that really made me think was when he said mothers are building up world changers. that as a mother, i've been called by God to raise up my tiny humans to make a difference.

talk about some serious pressure.
but when i really think about it, it's a beautiful pressure to be put on my shoulders.

from the day i birth my babies to the day they turn eighteen, i have the ability to build them up, or tear them down. i'm in the position to speak life to them, or to constantly yell. i have the ability to instill in them Godly values, or let the world have it's way with them.

and it might not be the popular way.
but.
i'm deciding now, that the influence i'll have on my children will be to raise them up in the name of Jesus to love the Lord and be world changers. to see the world differently. to love people well. and to grow in God's grace.

the closer we get to meeting our little nugget the more i realize that parenting isn't just making sure they eat and sleep. it isn't just making sure they get to baseball practice on time, or make sure they have a present for that birthday party. it isn't hounding them until they make all A's in school.

parenting is a chance to raise up Godly men and women. it's a chance to change future generations.

"mothers are called through their sons and daughters to change the course of history and to bring forth world changers."

there's so much about parenting that i don't have a clue about.
but what i do know, is that i have influence over my children.

the way i choose to live my life, will affect theirs.
they way i choose to use my words, will affect the way they use theirs.
the way i choose to handle tough situations, will affect the way they handle theirs.

i'm going to let my life be a life that's worth looking up to. and not in a conceded way.
but i want my children to remember me as being a Godly woman.

i want them to remember that i didn't yell and scream at them when they did something wrong.
i want them to remember that i parented well, without putting fear in them.
i want them to remember that at times i was wrong, and i admitted it.
i want them to remember that i loved well, in turn making them love well.

"a mother holds a significant amount of influence in the way she speaks, and the way she lives her life."

raising a child can't be easy. hello, i was one once, and i promise you i was not an easy child to raise. but. i hear it can be the most rewarding thing on the planet.
and so no, i don't want to mess this up.
because it's a short window that i have with my babies until they all grow up.
and for those short eighteen years i want to make sure i point them to Jesus in everything i do.

we live in a very fast paced, technologically driven world. which can be wonderful at times, but also scares the crap out of me when it comes to my children. 

sonny and i joke all the time that we're going to be the worlds meanest parents because of how little technology our kids will have. it's something we've decided on now. so that it doesn't become a problem. i also just read an article, ok a bunch of articles, on how children really shouldn't watch tv before their two. and that kids who watch the average amount of tv kids are watching these days (before the age of 5) create problems down the road. but did we really need to be told these things? 

"our homes need to be saturated with God."

am i crazy to think my kids won't watch tv before their two? no, i'm not. but. i'm going to do everything i can to not let that tv become a constant babysitter. because there's no way letting a child watch tv every day for long periods of time is having them saturated in God. 

i'm going to monitor what my kids watch. and yes. even disney channel shows. i'm going to monitor the time they spend in front of the tv. i'm going to make sure that tv is never the first thing they want to do. 

because i want my house saturated with God. 

because satan will be knocking at my front door. 

i honestly can not wait to be a mommy. i can't wait to raise up this child (and their siblings) to know God. 

i can't wait to raise up my little world changers. 

*all quotes from the sermon*

http://churchintheson.com/series/mothers-day/