“When parents face life’s transitions, God’s gift to them is the love and care of their children.”
Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – May 25, 2023
Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home. John 19:25-27, NKJV
From our very first breath, we are dependent upon our parents for life and sustenance. This is true of the infant who cannot feed itself, yet it is equally true of the young adult coming of age and looking for guidance and direction on what it means to be a good and honorable adult man or woman. Through every one of our early life transitions, parents are God’s gift to children to comfort them when they fall and encourage them when they are afraid. And yet, as both children and adults continue upon the journey of life, this relationship of care and dependency begins to evolve and change.
When parents face the transitions of retirement, aging, poor health, and even end-of-life planning, God’s gift to them is the love and care of their children.
As a child, it is difficult and even disorienting to navigate this transition. You’ve spent your entire life being cared for by your parents, yet now find yourself invited into a season of care and leadership in their time of need. It’s important to see the invitational nature of this call, for every child is free to reject this vocation, just as a parent has the freedom to walk away from a young child in their time of need. Yet when this invitation is taken up and accepted with great courage, we are able to know in new and profound ways the depths of familial love, and encounter the mercy of God in remarkable ways.
It is difficult to raise a child, requiring countless hours of sacrificial love, patience, and trust in the goodness of God. It is no different to care for parents in their season of need, for it is also an undoubtedly exhausting and sorrow-filled journey. However, since God is with us in each and every season, even life’s heavy weights can be transformed by his grace, and in the struggle we encounter him afresh and discover the goodness of life and the love of a family. And so, as St. John Chrysostom reminds us, when we look to Christ and his love for his mother as he hung upon the cross, we too must “even to our last breath show every care for our parents.”
Prayer
Father, thank you for the gift of family and the way you reveal your love through the relationship between parents and children. Give us the courage to love sacrificially and serve wholeheartedly through each and every season of life, we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Application
What does it look like in your season of life to be a servant-hearted child or parent?
Related Reading
Exodus 20:12; Matthew 19:19; Colossians 3:20
Worship Resource
Passion feat. Kari Jobe, Cody Carnes, & Fernandinho: The Blessing
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