Freedom is Found in Obedience

Independence Day being just yesterday and it being an election year we are getting to hear a lot about freedom, politics, and all that which comes along with it.  So I think a good question we can ask ourselves, as moms is what can I do?  We all get a vote, we get our say but honestly that sometimes just feels like wasted time.  More of a hassle than it’s worth dragging the kids with me to vote or finding a sitter.   

I am not telling you not to vote.  I believe it is very important for each person to vote.  Because really if we choose not to vote than we should choose not to complain about the outcome, right?  It is like when I ask my son what he would like for lunch, and he chooses not to respond, so I make him a PB&J.  Should he complain about that?  No.  I gave him his chance to tell me what he wanted.  Now if he tells me he wants mac & cheese and I give him a ham sandwich now there is something to complain about. 

 

As a mom we can be a good example by voting but what else can we do?  Think about it and see what you come up with.  I am going to give you something that weighs heavy on my heart. 

 

I will always obey your law, forever and ever.  I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts.  Psalm 119: 44-45

 

“Freedom is not found in autonomy, it is found in obedience.”  (Tedd Tripp – Shepherding a Child’s Heart)

 

God has blessed us mothers.  He has given us the opportunity to raise up the next generation.  What a huge responsibility.  Think of what can be done with that.  We have become a nation so focused on the individual’s freedom that we have completely neglected true freedom.  Our culture is all about “Me.  Me.  Me.”  And what does Jesus teach us?  He teaches us to love one another and to serve.

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 13:34

 

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."  Mark 10:45

 

Think about that for a minute or two.  What would happen if we focus more on teaching our kids to love God and showing them what it looks like to love one another and to serve than we spend watching T.V. or running them from one event to the next?  What would happen?  Oh, friend it would be good I can promise you that.  We may not be able to make any huge changes that are seen tomorrow in this culture but girl, we can have a huge impact on it in time.  And from what God has taught me, that is how He often works, in time, His time.

 

I pray that you see the gift and influence that God has given you as a mom.  Use it.   Focus your heart on Christ, learn from Him, and find rest in Him.  Teach your children by your example and guide them.  How can we help our children love and serve one another if we don’t know how?  Examine hearts.  Read Nehemiah.  What a great example of the focus we should have.  He is rebuilding the wall in Jerusalem and he says to those who are trying to distract him, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down” (Nehemiah 6:3). 

You too, my friend, are doing a great work in raising your children up to have a heart that is in love with the Lord.  Don’t ever forget that when distraction come your way, because you know they will.  Look them right in the face and say, “I am doing a great work and I can not come down.”