In every season, I need Jesus
Not long ago I had a difficult day with one of my kids. We had a mini-battle over technology use and expectations and mid-fight I felt my anger starting to move beyond a simmer and realized I needed a break.
I called a time-out and we each retreated to our corners.
My thought train just then was off the rails, and while I struggled to get it back on track, it rumbled away with judgments about this child's eternal destiny.
Could you really be saved and behave like this? Could the Holy Spirit really coexist in your life while you talk to your mother this way? (fortunately, I did not say these things)
Then it hit me. I still need Jesus, too. In every season I prove that I still need Jesus.
As a disobedient self-driven child, I needed Jesus.
As an older too-smart-for-my-own-good kid, I needed Jesus.
A junior higher seeking the approval of peers, I needed Jesus.
A teenager chafing against my parents' rules, I needed Jesus.
A young adult testing out the world for myself, I needed Jesus.
A newlywed realizing my selfishness went deeper than I thought, I needed Jesus.
A new parent contrasting the perfection of God's love with my imperfect version, I needed Jesus.
A manager of a busy, growing household giving into overwhelming emotions, I needed Jesus.
A homeschool mom juggling hats that demanded patience (a LOT of patience), I needed Jesus.
Trying to hold tight even when it was time to let go, I needed Jesus.
Realizing I hit the end of myself multiple times each day, I need Jesus.
I'm still selfish, unloving, impatient, angry, tired, lazy, prideful, overwhelmed, worried, and insecure, almost on a daily basis.
And, now, more than ever, I need Jesus.
So, I stop, and get on their level (emotionally, physically, spiritually, all of it), and pour it out and let Him fix it. Again.
The beauty of Christmas is that it isn't a once in a lifetime celebration. Every year, we stop and remember. We anticipate his birth with the hope of the prophets, Mary and Joseph's faith, the shepherds' joy, the angels' peace, and God's overpowering love.
Every year we need to remember that He had to come, for us. Only His life, death, and resurrection could do all we needed to secure eternal life. Every season of life I prove that to myself yet again.
I need Jesus.
I called a time-out and we each retreated to our corners.
My thought train just then was off the rails, and while I struggled to get it back on track, it rumbled away with judgments about this child's eternal destiny.
Could you really be saved and behave like this? Could the Holy Spirit really coexist in your life while you talk to your mother this way? (fortunately, I did not say these things)
Then it hit me. I still need Jesus, too. In every season I prove that I still need Jesus.
As an older too-smart-for-my-own-good kid, I needed Jesus.
A junior higher seeking the approval of peers, I needed Jesus.
A teenager chafing against my parents' rules, I needed Jesus.
A young adult testing out the world for myself, I needed Jesus.
A newlywed realizing my selfishness went deeper than I thought, I needed Jesus.
A new parent contrasting the perfection of God's love with my imperfect version, I needed Jesus.
A manager of a busy, growing household giving into overwhelming emotions, I needed Jesus.
A homeschool mom juggling hats that demanded patience (a LOT of patience), I needed Jesus.
Trying to hold tight even when it was time to let go, I needed Jesus.
Realizing I hit the end of myself multiple times each day, I need Jesus.
I'm still selfish, unloving, impatient, angry, tired, lazy, prideful, overwhelmed, worried, and insecure, almost on a daily basis.
And, now, more than ever, I need Jesus.
So, I stop, and get on their level (emotionally, physically, spiritually, all of it), and pour it out and let Him fix it. Again.
The beauty of Christmas is that it isn't a once in a lifetime celebration. Every year, we stop and remember. We anticipate his birth with the hope of the prophets, Mary and Joseph's faith, the shepherds' joy, the angels' peace, and God's overpowering love.
Every year we need to remember that He had to come, for us. Only His life, death, and resurrection could do all we needed to secure eternal life. Every season of life I prove that to myself yet again.
I need Jesus.
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