Is Your Maturity Showing?

I’m sure you have all seen a little one, throwing a major fit, maybe some of you parents have wee ones who are testing you with these episodes currently.  I’m talking all out whining, crying, kicking and screaming, maybe thrashing around on the floor a bit for maximum effect. Cute, isn’t it? Not!

Or how about the child whose motto is, “never let them see you sweat”.  No matter, what the parent may say or do they are the immovable rock.   I think we call this one, “the strong-willed child”.   I don’t care if you ground me, spank me, take my very life away, I shall not be moved! Fun, huh?  Not so much.

Speaking of immovable rock, I have referred to my sister by this term of affection on occasion 🙂  When we were kids, my Mom took my brother, sister and I to the Health Department to get our vaccinations for school.  My sister, was not very excited about this prospect.  In an effort to alleviate her fears, my mom thought it would be best that my brother and I take our turns first so she could see it would be just fine, however, this did nothing to sway her and by the time it was her turn for the needle, her arms and legs were securely wrapped around a pole in the middle of the Dr’s Office.  She was not screaming, or crying, she was simply NOT going to move!  Then, there was the unfortunate biting of the poor nurse when she attempted to pry my sister’s arms loose, while my mom worked on the legs, YIKES!  But, the girl was not going to negotiate or budge and if memory serves me correctly, I believe, we walked out of there that day and only two of us received vaccinations 🙂

You mature ones reading this, have not demonstrated this type of behavior since your toddler years, but for me (and maybe a few others out there?), these toddler like characteristics are something I’ve demonstrated many times since those early years.  I have pondered this attitude that rears its ugly head from time to time, especially as it pertains to my relationship with my Heavenly Father.  I have demonstrated this toddler ‘tude with Him on many occasions, sometimes for sustained periods of time!

Like a loving Father, He is patient but firm, gentle but unbending.  You see as a parent who loves their child, there are certain boundaries that are necessary for the benefit of the child, certain rules that must be followed and there is no getting around them.  Not even if you scream, cry, pout, kick or attempt to ice Him out.  He loves us too much to let us have our own way!

As a child we sometimes think we know what’s best for us.  My bedtime on a school nite should be midnight, my diet should be made up of junk food, I can hang out with anyone I want to…and we fail to appreciate the wisdom our parents possess and the boundaries they lay down for our own benefit.

As a Child of God, we may have plans for our own lives, how we think things should go and just exactly how we should get there, but God says, “Wait just a minute little one, actually, you need to go this way.”  OR “We are not going anywhere, until you do what I told you to do”,  “I’m sorry you’re hurting, but trust me I have big plans for you that are for your good”.

I’m thinking I may suffer from some of those “strong-willed child” tendencies, because it has taken me literally years of life to finally come to the conclusion that what God says, He means and none of my fit throwing, regardless of what form it may display itself is going to change the mind of My Heavenly Father, who knows FAR BEYOND what I do and who loves me more than this mind can comprehend!

I can tell you that after your done screaming so hard that your gasping for air, when your eyes are so cried out that it feels there are no tears left, when you’ve shut down your emotional engines and closed yourself off to show Him, just how upset you really are…well after all that, I can tell you, it feels mighty good, to say, “Ok, let’s try it Your way”.  Maybe next time, I can get there with a little less fit throwing, I might just be maturing after all 🙂

“Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don’t try to figure out everything on your own.  Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go; he’s the one who will keep you on track.  Don’t assume that you know it all.  Run to God! Run from evil!  Your body will glow with health, your very bones will vibrate with life!  Honor God with everything you own; give him the first and the best.  Your barns will burst, your wine vats will brim over.  But don’t, dear friend, resent God’s discipline; don’t sulk under his loving correction.  It’s the child he loves that God corrects; a father’s delight is behind all this”. – Proverbs 3:5-12 (The Message)