My dad is no longer here for me to talk to and share time with. But he instilled in me the value of that time well spent. Time is the one commodity we can never get back. Once we spend a moment it is gone forever. We only have the memories and seeds planted with that time. A quote I came across says, “You will never look back on life and think, ‘I spent too much time with my kids.’”-Unknown. That is so true. Sometimes it seems there are more pressing things to attend to, and there are responsibilities; but spending time planting seeds in your children is one of our prime purposes.
“You will never look back on life and think, ‘I spent too much time with my kids.’”-Unknown
When we look at Joshua, we see a great leader who learned from Moses. Yet, when Joshua died and the elders with him, the next generation did not know the Lord. The result is a continuous cycle of generations not obeying God and displeasing God. Judges puts it they angered God. So, God would send neighboring nations to chastise His people. They would cry out. He would send a deliverer (a judge). He would die, and the cycle would repeat.
They abandoned Adonai, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, selected from the gods of the peoples around them, and worshipped them; this made Adonai angry. Judges 2:12 (CJB)
So this time invested in our children is for their benefit and our legacy. We all want the best for our children, so take time and be parents who are there.
I did, by going on a short road trip. It meant doing a lot of things I wasn’t thrilled to do. But you know what- it was the best time I could spend. I encourage you plant seeds and invest- your children deserve it.
Now I know this seems cliche. We regret time that we’ve wasted. But it bares repeating and remembering.
Our trip was short, but packed. We drove up to St. Augustine to visit a stately home built to model the Alhambra in Spain. There were many artifacts and treasures there.
The one that elicited the greatest response was in the Egypt room. There was a rug 2,400 years old. It has been looted from one of the tombs and thrown to the side by the thief. Then it came into possession of the owner of the house. Hearing the eager conversation about that rug from my two daughters was priceless.
But my son took the cake. We were given little audio guides to help explain each room and exhibit. It was the size of a small phone. As I had to carry him, my guide became his walkie talkie. My job was to put the number in for each exhibit as we came to it. His excitement in listening to the voice and trying to tell me about each stop, was priceless. He was so serious and just wanted to be helpful to his dad.
“In family relationships, love is really spelled T.I.M.E.” – Dieter F. Uchtdorf
Those are just a glimpse of the joy that came from trudging up stairs in less than ideal conditions. Two preteen daughters on the cusp of teenage years and a 3 year old son who wanted to share their thoughts with their dad. Priceless.
Next blog we’ll detail other stops on our little trip. Thank you for reading. And please invest time in your children and loved ones. It is something that gives more than it ever takes.
