And the child continued to grow and to become strong in spirit, and he lived in the deserts until the day of his public appearance to Israel.
The Child continued to grow and become strong, increasing in wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.
Lately, I've been struggling with the idea of my daughter leaving home to travel to who knows where and live alone in the big world when it is time for her apprenticeship to start in November. I have worried over her safety when she goes off hiking and camping. This business of her growing up, becoming independent and moving away is hard. Letting go is hard.
There have been some radio programs on this topic lately that I've heard snippets of, when I was out driving in the evening to pick up my son from work. These programs were on this very topic of letting our adult children go, pulling back, not offering as much advice, keeping our mouth shut when they come in at all hours of the night and just putting them in God's keeping and care.
In my Bible reading in Luke, here are two verses, one is about John the Baptist and the other about Jesus. I don't know if John lived in the deserts with his parents. I kind of have a feeling he went off alone and it was during this time that he continued to grow and became strong in spirit. I'm guessing his mom and dad must have worried for his safety while he was gone, but they knew that John was blessed by God and God had big plans for him to be the forerunner of Christ.
It was the desert experience that most likely caused John to grow and be strong in spirit. I need to trust that when my daughter leaves home to go to a strange city to live for six months that God will use this "desert" experience of being alone in a strange place for her spiritual good.
Jesus, in Luke 2, grew and became strong, increasing in wisdom and the grace of God was upon Him. Isn't that what we all want for our children? She has grown up, she has gained wisdom and she has a strong faith in God. What more could I want?
This business of parenting is not for the faint of heart. I thought once they reached adulthood, my job was done and it would be smooth sailing after that. I was not prepared for the motherly protective instinct to kick in. This is MY PROBLEM. I must pull back, let God take over, pray for my children daily, and STOP WORRYING about them. God knows what His plan is for each of their futures. Can I trust His plan? Can you trust His plan?
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