Showing Our Children Jesus' Constant Love

Friends of mine had a new baby a few days ago. As the shock of her dependence on them sinks in, it reminds me of how utterly dependent I am on God. I have known that Jesus has saved me since I was a small child, but I can’t count the number of times each day that I think and act like he didn’t. The obvious dilemma is: How can I trust him when I fail him so often?

Jesus talked about this concern the night before he gave up his life on the cross to save us. He said he would send his Spirit to come along side us to keep us in faith. Like a parent of a newborn child, the Spirit is constantly checking on our spiritual breathing and eating and resting in the forgiving love of Jesus. And when we go away from God throughout the moments of our life, he calls us back to the relief of our Father’s love for us.

Our salvation is not dependent on us. It is totally a powerful, dynamic gift of God. The devil tries to take this truth away from us by making us think our faith is this religious exercise of our own will. We simply cannot produce or grow our faith in Jesus by ourselves. We are as utterly dependent on his power working in us as a newborn baby is on her parents.

God wants us to give this same relief to our children. Their security in the love and forgiveness of Jesus for them should never be contingent on their ability to be “good”.  Parents can be afraid to liberally give the love of Jesus to their kids, thinking that it will be a license for them to disobey. But the love of Jesus, not his rules, is what saves and transforms us! The Spirit works faith in our children just as he does in us. It is not dependent on our commitment or our intellect.

A Daily Prayer:
O Jesus, thank you for saving us and sending your Spirit into our hearts to draw us back to you. Give us trust in your love to raise our children to know they are saved by you alone. Amen.