One the best parts of being a parent is seeing the newness of the world through the eyes of your child as he experiences things for the first time. The coldness of snow, the sight of a plane in the sky, the sound of the ocean waves, the taste of a cookie, and the look of wonder in your child’s eyes at the marvels of this world.
Obviously, as our children grow, the things they discover change. For us, since we have a baby and teenagers, we are discovering more than the simple joys of sugar; we are also knee deep in the hard truths of biology and conception. Fun times!
A few months ago, my husband and I had a highly entertaining conversation with a few of our kids about the first race they were ever on, the race for life. During this conversation my super competitive child realized that there are about 200 million sperm on this first race. He said, “Wait, so you’re telling me, I beat 200 million people to the egg? I can’t believe I won.”
The rest of the night he kept looking around at his siblings and saying, “I’m just so glad they won. I can believe we all won.”
Just like that, a concept that has become “old” to me, I saw in a new way.
If half of your DNA changed, you would be a totally different person. What you look like, your gender, your personality, your talents and weaknesses could all be altered. The microscopic part of you that won that race beat the odds, maneuvered obstacles, chose the right path, swam the fastest and burrowed the quickest. And the result is YOU. You are a winner!
Here’s the nugget of truth I expressed to my son. I believe that God chose that microscopic little dude to win that race because He chose you. He packed you full of talents and abilities to use for Him. You are not an accident. You are perfect the way you are.
The Bible says in Psalm 139:13-14, “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
I have the amazing responsibility of raising seven very different children. They all came from the same gene pool but their personalities couldn’t be more diverse. That’s a good thing. There is no comparing them because they are unique.
There is freedom in that. In just being you. Shining where you are gifted and learning from those who are gifted differently.
My mama goal is to raise my seven kiddos to be the people God created them to be; to equip them with love, confidence and knowledge to go out into the world and accomplish great things for the glory of God.
They are not all going to do this the same way. Some will blaze a trail, learning the hard way (the way their mama learned) and some will follow timidly behind discovering their own path. How boring life would be if we were all the same?
All of us hate certain things about ourselves. But even our weaknesses make us unique. It’s the varied combination of all of our strengths and weaknesses that make us who we are. Embrace that! God created you exactly the way you are for His purpose and to do great things.
Experiencing life again through the eyes of my kids is thrilling, but it’s also terrifying. Kids see the wonder, adults know the danger. I want them to succeed and thrive, but I know that sometimes that means they will fail and feel defeated. It’s all part of growing us into who we were meant to be. The tough part for me is learning to let go, little by little; to allow them to fail, so that they can grow.
So if you feel like you are failing at life right now, let me encourage you, that you are here for a purpose. You beat the odds. You won the race. You have a chance at life. Figure out the reason God chose you to win and make a difference in this world.
Be humble. Be kind. Be you!
I’m so glad they all won.