Loving a Gifted Child

"Having then gifts...

let us use them"

Romans 12:6

I saw an ad the other day, in a homeschooling magazine, for some sort of specialized curriculum.  And the attention-getter of the ad said, "Is your child gifted?"

When I read that, I thought, "Well, who's not going to pause when they see that??"  I'm sure many parents read that ad and buy that product, hoping to prove what they have long suspected ~ that their child is above average, academically. 

I feel a little sorry for those parents.  I wish they could all walk the path I walk ~ the path of knowledge; the certainty of the superior gifts and skills that my children possess.  Intelligent, courteous, thoughtful, obedient, brave, clean, reverent...

Sorry; I think I drifted into the Boy Scout Law there...

I'm kidding, of course.  My children are not perfect.  But I'm also right about how amazing and awesome they are.  And so is every other parent who believes that their child excels in some way. 

All children do.  Scripture tells us that each of us has something special from God.  A gift.  So each child has something only they can offer the world around them.   And while there are products that can help your child reach their full potential academically, only God can help each of us reach our full full potential.

I have a sweet friend whose daughter is walking through a tough time in her life.  She battled medical issues last year, then headed off across the country for her first year of college.  And it's been a tough year.   She has worked hard, in her studies and in her extra-curricular activities.  But she has also made some bad choices.  And those are coming back to haunt her now.  And my wonderful friend is just now finding out about some of those choices.

It's hard to find out your kids are not as perfect as you thought they were.  It's hard to watch them make mistakes, and then have to live through the consequences.  And just like when we have to punish them, it sometimes hurts us more than it hurts them. 

Or at least it feels that way. 

But a misbehaving, wayward, prodigal, or estranged child is no less gifted.  It can be hard to look past the pain of now, but that's what God does.  God sees us who we will be.  He sees us as forgiven... righteous. 

This is the message to anyone hurting, as my friend is ~ yes, your child is gifted.  And yes, she is a gift.  She is young, yet.  God has much to do in her, and through her.  And someday you'll come out the other side of this trial.  You might not be able to see that now, but that's what faith is  ~ believing when we can't see.

After all, faith is a gift, too.   Use it.

~ "Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me...

for of such is the kingdom of heaven." ~

Matthew 19:14

~