For my family, the end of summer has arrived with my sons heading back to school. This year is a bit different as my oldest is a High School Senior, and his new status has caused me to really shift my thinking over the past few weeks. My "little boy" is a young man who will soon be heading into the world to make his way and live out what he believes is God's plan for his life. My role is shifting from provider to advisor. As I look back, I start to wonder "Have I done everything I can to prepare him?", "Will he be safe?" and "What can I do in the next 10 months to make sure he is ready?"
These questions and many others race through my mind almost daily, and as I contemplate them, I am drawn to a Scripture passage about being sent into the world - Matthew 28:19-20. In the New American Standard Bible, Jesus said, "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
This command was not just to the Disciples in the early 1st Century, but to us, His modern day disciples. When Matthew recorded the Great Commission, he not only gave us Jesus' directions but His promise to help us carry it out as well. This promise is a great comfort to me as I do my best to live out His will in my life, but it is also an example for me to follow with my son. I have let him know that no matter what he does or where he goes, I'll love him and do my best to be with him. Unlike the promise of constant presence we have from Jesus, my support may be through a phone call, email or social media, but it will be there nonetheless. As I reflect on my own transition to adulthood, I see how my father modeled this for me, giving me the freedom to make decisions but always being there for me in the good and bad. I only hope I can do half as well with my boy.
I take comfort in knowing that Jesus is with me and that He will be with my son as well. We live in a fallen world where anything can happen, but we need not fear as Jesus is with us, even to the end of the age. Perhaps it's time for each of us to take a moment and thank Jesus for keeping His promise to be with us, even when we choose not to be with Him.
Written by Richard Pease
Divisional Controller
I nicely to believe to be come to be responsible for own personal experience with the Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth to have blessing in life
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