What Does Love…Do?
Walking through Chicago, you see parents interacting with their kids all the time. Walking down sidewalks, playing at parks, on the train, pushing strollers and wearing baby-wraps. Kids being rewarded, and being disciplined. Parenting styles of all kinds are on full display – some styles absolutely baffle me, others make me cringe…but there are times when you see a partent engage a child in such a way that it inspires not only the kid, but all watching, to live a better life.
Many parents love their children, but few parents know how to put that love into constructive action. What I mean is, sometimes we think we’re loving a child when we’re actually harming her. Love is not as simple as a kiss on the cheek or handing them 50 candy-bars a day just to appease their wishes.
Not being a parent myself, I can not assume I would be any different than countless well-meaning parents in Chicago – and my heart goes out to folks doing the most important work in the world, raising up the next generation. It IS the most important work…which is why this question must be asked…
What does Love do?
I look to the perfect picture of familial love – the Father God and his Son Jesus Christ. Review the Gospels to find what the most beautiful, ultimate parenting skills look like in action. Re-read the Gospels with the eyes of how God ‘parented’ Jesus, and you may find that the Love of the Father sends his Son into Mission.
I’ve seen some parents walking down the street with their two-year-old running about 20 feet behind them, frantically trying to keep up; I’ve seen other parents let their kids shoot ahead of them unawares, running at full-speed toward busy streets, and still others keep their kids on leashes, never leaving them out of their reach (with literal leashes~ or a GPS on their teen’s cell phone)!
Watch the Father keep his Son intimately close for years, teaching him who He is and Whose He is. At twelve years old, Jesus has a better grip on his identity and his mission than most adult Christian leaders. Speaking to his earthly parents, who had LOST HIM at a city-festival, found him in the Temple, and Jesus’ pre-teenage voice, cracking as he plainly said, “Why are you looking for me? Didn’t you know that I must be where my Father’s work is!” Potent — both intimacy and mission wrapped into one sentence…(Lk 2:48-50)
As Jesus’ life progressed, he was sent out as the Light of the World, doing incredible work and breaking through the hardest barrier in the Universe – the human heart. Even still, as a Good Father, God was ever-present and affirming of his Son, attuning regularly with Jesus in times of intimate prayer and communion.
And it is in fact, the same relationship God hopes for all those chasing after the Jesus-Way. We have a real opportunity to be “Fathered by God” – to find our true identity, and our true purpose and mission in life. There are enough voices vying for our hearts and our dollars in this culture – it will take focus and intentionality to be fathered by God, but its worth it – not just for your own life, but for your children’s.
