How to Become Part of Their World

Dr. Tim Clinton, writer and psychologist for Dr. James Dobson's Family Talk, recently said, "Every time a child is born - so is a mother." Motherhood is a journey that begins and never ends. The same is true of Fatherhood. God gives us family and we become part of their world, and they become part of ours. We get to pay attention to every part of their lives, watching them learn to walk, talk, and eat real food for the first time. We get to see them smile, and we get to see how they understand so much of the world around them. Kids are incredible, talented, smart, and such a fun addition to our world.

But, sometimes life gets busy. We get busy. And we forget to be a part of their world, like we once had been. We get so wrapped up in grocery shopping, cooking, and running our kids around, that we don't take the time to pay attention to them. We throw on their coats, demand that they be quiet and listen, and then days pass without paying attention to them. So how do we change that routine? How do we become part of their world once again?

We can start by making a regular attempt at getting out of our own world. Work, hobbies, and paying too much attention to everyone else, can rob us of paying attention to our kids. Yesterday, I realized, when I was driving around town, feeling unfulfilled, that I was only thinking about myself all morning. It is natural; but, then, we need to make an honest attempt to refocus and redirect our attention.

You might be thinking of all the things you have to do in one day and say that you do not have much time to focus on your kids, you barely have enough time to focus on God. Well, I say to you, from the great words of Ariel in Disney's The Little Mermaid, "Look at this stuff, isn't it neat. Wouldn't you think my collections complete? Wouldn't you think I'm the girl, the girl who has everything." She has everything, but it's not enough. "I wanna be where the people are; I wanna see, wanna see them dancin." She wants to be part of that world, she wants to be where the people are, because the people are more important that the things we worry about.

Being a part of their world means thinking about them, paying attention to them, searching for their needs, enjoying them. Then, we can understand what it means to be a part of Jesus' world. Living for Jesus is not a phrase that is easy for most people to understand, but when we begin to live for others, think about Him, and see the world through God's eyes, we are beginning to live as Jesus lived.

Thanks for reading!

~Melissa Seng