On the 23rd May 1996 our first child was born and what joy she brought into our daily life experience.. It is now 13 years later and the baby girl has grown into a wonderful and very beautiful young lady.. Yes our daughter Larnelle has entered the TEEN years.
Some have said to me that I now have a teenager in the house.. My response is that I have a young lady in my house who is 13 years old. You see I am persuaded that using the term teenager does not help a young man or young woman as they face the many physical, mental and emotional changes that are experienced in the years 13-18. On thing I desire is that Larnelle has no confusion about the fact that she is a young lady going through many changes.. Teenager has no gender, no indication of experience and it is way too generic for my liking.. When I call my daughter young lady I do a few crucial things;
1. I confirm her gender. She is a lady, a woman. This helps her understand her sexual identity and also affords us as parents the opportunity to instruct and guide this young lady as she meanders through this period of life and has to negotiate the many changes and also make decisions. She is a young woman not some generic and fairly meaningless teenager !
2. I confirm her level of maturity and experience - she is young, inexperienced and needing guidance. It also reinforces the God established order in the family of having parents who are to guide and instruct and train up their children in the way they should go. Is Larnelle capable of making wise and grown up choices ? YES she is.. However her limited experience, youthfulness and continuous changes cause her to be unable to consistently make wise and adult choices.. Larnelle is aware, that at this crucial time when she, like a tender shoot is growing into maturity and in preparation to face life, she will need Godly counsel and Wisdom to help her pass through this phase of her maturing process and emerge on the other end with much wisdom and few scars.
Faye and I realise that our children are and will be our primary focus for some time.. We also are very conscious of the reality that unless God imparts to us a spirit of wisdom, insight, understanding and revelation then we are most likely going to blow it with Larnelle. Pray for us as we walk this road.. Many of our friends have children who have passed through these teen years, some have seen their children do well and others have agonised as they saw their children experience pain and hardship- Your prayers for us as we begin this new era in parenting would be so greatly appreciated..
Larnelle invited some of her friends over for a movie night to celebrate her birthday and of course dad and mum had so much joy helping her prepare for her night with close friends.. We were there to prepare and set the tone for the evening and then we withdrew and left them to enjoy themselves.. It pleases me to let you know that everybody had a great time and we did not have any complaints from parents.
Sydney and Joshua have helped me to keep a youthful and adventurous view to life.. We experience some temper tantrums as the two of them tussle over control of the toys, that particular cup or plate etc etc.. Sydney is realising that her younger brother is fast becoming somebody that she is not able to freely push around.. They both love to sing and on Sunday mornings as I often lead worship I see them clapping hands, dancing and singing to the Lord.. The joy this brings is just about beyond description.
Both Sydney and Joshua are adventurous and whilst we have been doing construction work at the training centre we have found it necessary to regularly go outside and check that they are fine.. We find them on the piles of sand, playing with water, trying to get at the cement. Of course it goes without saying that all their enjoyment and fun does come at a price- DIRTY CLOTHES, FREQUENT CLEANING OF THE HOUSE- would I change it ? Absolutely not !!
Faye and I have had the joy of being invited to minister at some churches in Windhoek, and having a wife like Faye who is a constant encourager is the best. In addition to having the joy and privilege of presenting God's Word to other believers we have so enjoyed building relationships with new people. One of my regular statements to our leadership and believers in the local fellowship is this: 'Life is Relationships!' The quality of my life is vested not in the position or possessions I have, but rather in the depth, meaning and excellence in the relationships I have.
I had the joy of speaking at a children's camp at the beginning of this month and was thrilled to have the opportunity to present God's Word to children who live in one of the three Arks that Christ's Hope runs here in Namibia. One of the young lads asked me where I was from.. My response was to ask him if he had any ideas.. Well at first he thought I came from Rehoboth, then it was Windhoek, followed by a string of of towns in Namibia.. Finally he decided that I must be from Cape Town ! The look on his face was priceless when I told him I was from Zimbabwe.. Of the 18 or so young men who attended the camp, six indicated they wanted to commit their lives to Christ and be born again -
I end this post with news about a friend who recently went in for a medical examination and was found to have a very large tumor in his pelvic area. So serious was the view of the doctor that he recommended that my friend return to the USA for further tests and treatment. Lon has been serving in Namibia for more than 10years and in recent months he and I were working very closely together to bring leadership gift to the church where we fellowship. Lon was leading one of the recently launched cell groups and was a regular when it came to preaching on Sunday mornings. We are praying for Lon and his wife Val and are trusting that God will make a way for them and bring healing to Lon. For those of you on Face Book you can find Lon Garber and read more from him..
Till the next post - walk in the power of the Holy Spirit, live at peace with all people (as far as it is up to you) and above all seek to bring praise and glory to Christ in all that you say and do..
