Parental Guidance Suggested

If the Motion Picture Association of America is suggesting that we should guide our children, then by all means, it must need to be said. Killing myself laughing at the irony. I have a new realization of the necessity of guiding the teenagers even more than the toddlers now that I have experienced both (at the same time, no less), yet, somehow, we seem to be on shaky ground here. Let’s face it. . . it is just easier to guide them to talk, walk, and pee in the toilet than it is to navigate life. Heck, I am still learning how to navigate life for myself. But, alas, this does not let me off the hook. The best example I can give of guiding my teenager relates on many levels to my last blog about teaching people to ‘hear’ from God. My oldest child recently asked if she could go to a new friend’s house. In her lifetime, she has not been allowed to go to any friend’s house unless we knew the parents personally. So, the easy answer would have been ‘no.’ But in my quest to guide, I said ‘yes.’ After the initial shock wore off for both of us, we had a conversation that went something like this: In less than a year, she will be a legal adult. In less than two years, she will be living away from home attending college. She will be able to go anywhere she wants. So, it is time to learn how to navigate without my absolute power getting in the way. Insert smiley face here. I gave her two scenarios. One: she enters a place where kids and/or adults are doing things that are seemingly bad. She does a ‘gut’ check. She knows the peace of God, and she needs to learn to trust it. If she is in this environment and feels His peace, she can stay. She can even be salt and light just by being present. Two: she enters a place where kids and/or adults are doing things seemingly appropriate. She does a ‘gut’ check. In this environment she feels uneasy, and doesn’t sense His peace, then she leaves. . . without regard to anyone’s feelings but His (this is the harder part for some). Obviously, either of these scenarios can go either way. The point is that she learns to ‘hear’ Him. And, trust that Christ living in her will guide her. So, might I suggest parental guidance for us all.