Arlie Whitlow

Enjoy your gifts this summer. What gifts am I talking about? Your children are your gifts. Psalm 127:3 says, “Children are a gift from the Lord; babies are a reward.”

You ever think about what children give to us as parents? In Dr. Edward Hallowell’s book, The Childhood Roots of Adult Happiness, he shares some of the gifts our children give. They take our eyes off the pressures of life. They give us a chance as adults to roll on the floor, bark, and make faces. They keep us from getting stale, dry, and boring. They make us exercise as we chase after them.

The keep us mentally sharp. Ever tried to help your kid with homework? They give us an opportunity to relearn all we forgot in school! Kids keep us from taking ourselves too seriously. They make us pray harder than ever, as we cry out for God’s wisdom and grace. Looking into the eyes of our children they stir in us a new desire to dig deeper, try harder, and go further in life for them.

Our children are gifts! These little gifts don’t hang round forever. As quickly as our childhood years passed by, their childhood will vanish away. The fun years, where we can really connect with them as kids – family movie night, fishing, bed time stories, kiss me good night – will fly by. They can grow up and out of the home without us ever connecting with them.

Isn’t it interesting how we struggle to enjoy the season we’re in when we’re in it? When we were single it was, “I can’t wait until I get married.” When we get married – “I can’t wait until I have kids.” When we have kids – “I can’t wait until they grow up.” When they grow up – “I wish they were babies again.”

Enjoy where you are! Enjoy your kids. The other day I took Moriah and Emily fishing. It was one of those nights when the TV had been on too long. I said, “Let’s go fishing!” and they reluctantly came along. My sole responsibility was to worm the hooks, which kept me busy! We hit the pond at just the right time, pulling in one fish after another. I got to say, I had a blast and they did too. I left that time energized.

Our children are great gifts. Are you enjoying them?

1. They connect us with Christians from ages past.
2. They remind us that our faith has deep, historical roots and rich tradition.
3. They inform our minds, grounding us in truth while stirring our hearts and emotions.
4. They are not introspective and self centered, but focused on God and his greatness and power. Less about “me”and “I” and more about God.
5. They have stood the test of time, and actually have grown in popularity and meaning.
6. They can easily be rearranged, with new rhythms, chord progression, and new choruses to connect with the popular culture in our day.
7. They enrich personal devotion time when sung after reading the Bible, and prayer.
8. They are easy to learn and sing. Some modern worship songs are difficult to learn, and in keys that are too high. They are nice to listen to, but can come across more like a solo performance than congregational worship.
9. They add an extra punch to Sunday worship, and can be easily blended with choruses.
10. They give a balance to our worship. We’re not just singing TO God, but ABOUT God, about his greatness and love.

So let’s mix it up – new and the old!

I’m really enjoying a new recording by Tommy Walker called, “Generation Hymns”. Check out the video below. You can find all the hymns rearranged by Tommy on youtube. Enjoy.

On Saturday of last week my family had a chance to go to the Jockey Lot in Anderson, SC, a huge flea market with everything from boiled peanuts, to underwear, makeup, guns, toys, lawn mower blades, and dogs. We loved it and I hope you’ll check it out if you’re ever in that area.

When the kids heard about the dogs that was the first thing they wanted to see. Wendy and I didn’t want a dog. We’ve got two kids in diapers, and don’t need a third mess to clean up. The kids knew that but began asking anyway. Over and over and over again they asked. Finally, one of my kids said, “Dad, I beg you!” We circled back to look again at one miniature poodle. You know when you circle back to look at a pet it’s over. The kids wanted this dog so bad they were willing to cough up all the money they had saved up.

Finally, the pressure was so great, we gave in. They jumped, and screamed. Call me weak, but I wanted to make my kids happy. Seeing their new joy over this little dog gave me great joy as their father.

In Luke 11:13 Jesus said, “If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Sometimes in life you get what you ask for. There is a gift awaiting you and all you have to do is ask. That gift is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit fills us when we are born again, but he wants to continually fill our lives. When you are filled with the Holy Spirit there is new power, purity, unity, understanding, and great joy.

I want to encourage you to ask today for a fresh, personal experience with the Holy Spirit. Paul would later write in Ephesians 5:18-21, “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God.”

The above video above shows a dramatic rescue. An officer was at the right place, at the right time, to pull back a discouraged, confused man who had chosen to end his life by falling in front of an oncoming subway train. The officer saved a life, and was hailed as a hero. That’s what I call quick reflexes!

The Bible tells us that we as followers of Christ can also save lives. In James 5:20 it says, “let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”

When we go after those who are wandering in sin, and bring them back we perform a dramatic rescue in the eyes of God. We save a life from regret, shame, defeat, and death – spiritual death, death of potential in God, eternal death. What could be more important than saving a life?

Who do you need to grab hold of? Who do you need to invite to lunch? Who do you need to call? One of the best ways to save a life is to just show love. We’re all capable of that. Don’t express disgust over their sins and mistakes. Love covers a multitude of sins!

You might be the hero God wants to use. You may be the one at the right place, at the right time.