In Ten Years...

Ten years ago, life was quite different...remember?  What was the world like?  How old were you?  What were your dreams?  When I was a kid, I thought ten years seemed like eternity!  As an adult, I realize how quickly it can pass by.  Just ten years ago, my youngest daughter, Deborah, was 12 years old.  Now she’s 22 and graduated from college!  So much life happened for her during that time.  So many life-shaping, life-influencing events and decisions.  Now think of your child(ren).  How old will they be in ten years?  We have the opportunity to influence their thinking, attitudes and actions...right now.  We can help mold them to be the adult we dream for them to be.

Dave and I dreamed and prayed for our daughters to know God and Jesus in a personal relationship.  We also wanted them to be world-changers, to be leaders in their generation...through their character and life decisions.  That didn’t just “happen”.  We were intentional about what we poured into their hearts and minds, and the boundaries we set for them.  Interestingly, many of those boundaries became their own as they grew up. 

What do you picture your child(ren) being like in ten years from now?  How can you influence and shape them toward that dream?  They will make their own decisions along the way, but we can guide them by what we talk to them about, and what we do with them.  Set some long range goals, then break them down into short range goals.  Look for the type of books and media you want them to learn from.  Have a plan.  Be intentional.  Keep motivated, and you will see fruit.  Just like an athlete trains, be diligent in the hard work.  In ten years from now, you’ll think back to this day and be glad you took the steps you did!

“Run in such a way that you may win. Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air; but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.”  I Cor. 9:24-27