catholic family faith

Back to School

Teachers and students have returned to school this week.  How has your family survived the return to activities and routine?

This first week of school is important for families.  It sets the tone for how they may relate to one another throughout the academic year.  Consider how your family did this first week of school by reflecting on these questions:

• Have we established a morning routine for breakfast, sharing the bathroom, deciding what to wear, and making sure we each have what we need before we walk out the door?
• Do we have a balanced after school routine:  extra-curricular activities, homework, family time?
• Have we eaten a meal together at least two times this week?
• Have we spent time together as a family talking about our day and sharing support and encouragement for one another?
• Are our activities balanced?  Are our kids in too many activities, too few, just right?

As you reflect on these questions, ask God to keep your family connected and supportive of one another.  If you feel out of sorts and unbalanced, ask God to help you to discern your priorities and create a more balanced schedule.

God of Love, help us to keep our focus on you and on one another.  Fill us with your Spirit of Compassion as we begin this school year.  Bless our year with love, joy, and peace.  Amen.

 

The Catholic Way to Pray

As Catholics, we have a rich history of personal and communal prayer.  It begins with our Jewish ancestors and continues through our ancestors from the 20th century and even to this day.  It is filled with rituals and traditions, Psalms and litanies, prayer throughout the day with Liturgy of the Hours, simple conversations with God, simply sitting and listening to God, and sacraments and liturgies, especially the Eucharistic liturgy (the Mass), which is the "source and summit" of our Catholic life.

Jesus is our great example of prayer.  In the Gospels, we read how Jesus often "went off by himself" to pray.  Yet he also prays with his friends and the crowds.  He showed his disciples how to pray by exemplifying a life of prayer.

As parents, we are called to follow Jesus' example of exemplifying a life of prayer so that our children will know how to and want to engage in prayer on their own and with a community.  But how do we do that exactly?

Here are some ideas for you to consider for your prayer life.

1.  There is no wrong way to pray!!!!  It's important for us to remember that we can pray according to our lives calls and our personalities.  Some of us may pray the daily Mass.  Others of us may pray a Rosary or another devotional.  We may pray the prayers of our community - the Our Father, Glory Be, Hail Mary, etc.  We may pray short, one line prayers throughout the activities of our days.  In the morning, we can offer up the day for a special intention; this wraps our entire day in prayer.  In the midst of our daily work, we can take short - 1-2 minute - breaks for quiet and calling God to mind.  (This practice of short breaks throughout the day doesn't only put us in touch with God, but it also helps energize our work.  It's actually quite refreshing.)  Just pray...in any way you are comfortable praying.

2.  Look to nature.  I remember hearing a story of St. Thomas Aquinas walking through the woods contemplating - thinking about - God.  He saw an acorn and stooped to pick it up.  As he held the acorn, he was overwhelmed with the Spirit of Understanding and considered how God is the Source and Order of all of creation.  God is in all things of creation.  So we can pray simply by enjoying nature - playing in the water, lying in the grass, listening to the birds, watching a sunrise or sunset, etc.  As we enjoy nature, we give thanks to God for the wonderful gifts of creation and all that God gives to us.

3.  Pray the prayers of the community.  I have heard stories of how people who are dying or have Alzheimer's will join in saying the prayers of their tradition.  A dying man who is unconscious and unresponsive may sit up and join in saying the prayers when his family begins praying the Rosary.  A woman who can't remember her family will participate in Mass without missing a beat.  The prayers of our community are powerful because they hold us in tradition and comfort.  The more we pray them, the more comfortable they feel and the more likely that we will naturally turn to them as we experience difficulties.

4.  Draw from the wellspring of the Mass.  Our Eucharistic liturgy - the Mass - is a rich source of prayer.  We pray in a variety of ways during the Mass.  We sing.  We move - stand, sit, kneel, fold our hands, etc.  We are silent - after the readings, after Communion.  We listen to and reflect the Scriptures.  We join our voices with others in our community in the common prayers - the Gloria, Alleluia, Creed, Our Father, etc.  We remember our needs and the needs of our world in the Prayers of the Faithful.

No matter what your prayer style or favorite way to pray, if you simply pray, that is enough.  Just praying is enough because the Holy Spirit can take our simple prayer and magnify it to change our spirits and the world.  So be mindful of praying and be an example for your children.

Vocations Awareness Week

The Catholic Church in the United States celebrates National Vocations Awareness this week, January 9-15, 2011. 

When Catholics hear the word “vocations,” we tend to think primarily in terms of the priesthood and religious life.  So when we hear about the vocations crisis, we primarily focus on the shortage of priests and religious sisters and brothers.

The vocations crisis, however, is much broader than just the priesthood and religious life.  In addition to priests, the Church needs lay people to serve in leadership roles in parishes and other ministries.  The World, too, needs people from all walks of life to take an active role in organizations serving people in need around the globe.  Thus, it is vital that we pray for and work to instill a sense of vocation in all people of the Church. 

All persons, because they are created by and in God, have a vocation, a calling, a natural inclination to live a particular way of life utilizing the abilities and talents with which God created them.  We shouldn’t be asking, “Am I called to a life of vocation?”  Rather, we should ask, “What vocation was I created to live?” 

In his message for World Vocations Day in 2001, Pope John Paul II said, “Every life is a vocation.”  The priest, the religious sister, the lay ecclesial minister, the teacher, the doctor, the engineer, the secretary, the construction worker, the delivery person, indeed everyone is gifted with talents, abilities, and interests that incline them toward the jobs in which they work.  Vocation goes beyond work.  It includes the entire process of living. 

It is fitting that National Vocations Awareness Week begins on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, when Jesus began his public ministry.  In his ministry, Jesus drew upon his natural abilities and interests to share God’s love with everyone he met.  He utilized the talents that were woven into his very being.  Jesus enjoyed and required time in prayer, talking to the Father and gathering strength and perspective for his time teaching and working with the people.  Jesus genuinely love people, especially the poor, sick, and vulnerable.  He had a gift – a wonderful and great gift – for helping people to reconcile with God, with others, and with themselves, healing them of their physical, emotional, and social illnesses.

And who helped Jesus learn his calling and discover his natural abilities?  Mary and Joseph, as well as his relatives and neighbors in the community of Nazareth.  Jesus learned who he was from Mary’s and Joseph’s gentle challenges and encouragement to discover his gifts and abilities.  As he interacted with his relatives and neighbors, he learned what he enjoyed doing and what others appreciated about him. 

When parents bring their children to the Church to be baptized, they make a promise to raise them in the ways of Christ Jesus and the teachings of the Church.  Within that promise is the responsibility to help their children discover and grow into the persons that God created them to be.  As parents watch their children grow, they help them to discover their abilities, usually by providing them a variety of opportunities to try new things.  Parents also help their children to realize the things they enjoy doing, encouraging them to participate in the activities that they like to do.

Parents do not work alone.  The Church, specifically parish communities, has a responsibility to support them in their role.  Within the parish, children, young adults, and people of all ages are invited to engage in activities to help them figure out the purpose for which God created them.  They participate in a variety of prayer opportunities to discover the style of prayer that suits them best.  They engage in service activities that challenge them to try new things and determine the kinds of activities they really enjoy doing.  They are invited to discern their gifts and talents so as to live according to the natural inclinations of the Spirit within them.

While National Vocations Awareness Week primarily focuses on the vocations of the priesthood and religious life, the entire people of God must begin to understand the overall definition of vocations, the natural inclination to live a particular way of life utilizing the abilities and talents with which God created us.  We need to create opportunities for people of all ages to explore their personal vocations so that every person created in God’s image may fully discover who God created them to be and to live their lives, utilizing their talents and abilities to the fullest.

If every person is challenged and helped to live fully, according to the Spirit’s calling within them, we will no longer have a vocations crisis in the Church or in our world.

For resources to use to explore vocations in the home, classroom, parish, or school, visit:

 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (www.usccb.org) - http://foryourvocation.org/

Lord's Day Faith Chat - 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time - October 24, 2010

Readings:  Sirach 35:12-14,16-18; Psalm 34; 2 Timothy 4:6-8,16-18; Luke 18:9-14

"For those who make themselves great will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be made great." (Luke 18:14b)

What, exactly, does it mean to be humble?  This is a question that I think parents struggle with in regard to their children.  Parents want to teach their children the virtue of humility, but they also want their children to have good self-esteem.  The struggle is to find the balance between healthy self-esteem and humility.

I think that the key to humility is love, specifically God's love.  God created each person in love.  Therefore, each person is good and should be treated with dignity and respect.  We should even treat ourselves with dignity and respect.

We humble ourselves in the presence of God and others when we put aside our own needs and wants in order to help others.  When we stop thinking about what others will think of us and sit by the "dorky kid" in the lunch room or rake the leaves of the "mean old man" down the street, we are practicing humility.  When we share our favorite toys or offer our last Dove chocolate to a co-worker, we are practicing humility.  When we leave work at a decent hour and spend the evening with our families, we are practicing humility.  When we stop what we're doing to calmly sit with a child who is upset or throwing a tantrum, we are practicing humility.

We also practice humility when we work to develop the abilities and talents with which God created us.  When we keep reading out loud to improve our reading skills, we are practicing humility.  When we kick that soccer ball just one more time and then again just one more time, we are practicing humility.  When we talk to ourselves in our cars as we prepare for an important presentation, without worrying about what the persons in the cars around us think, we are practicing humility.

When we realize our own goodness and appreciate and work to improve our own abilities and talents, we humble ourselves.  When we recognize goodness in others and act to help them realize their goodness, we humble ourselves.

Humility is a fruit of self-esteem.  If we feel good about ourselves and appreciate our abilities and talents, we will naturally appreciate the goodness of others and help them to realize their own dignity.  If we love ourselves as God created us to be, we will in turn love others as God created them.

So praise your children and encourage them to realize their abilities and talents.  Tell them every day how much you and God love them and want them to be happy. 

Faith Chat Questions:

Adults/Youth:  Today's Gospel reminds us to approach God and others with humility.  What does this mean, in practical terms?  How do you practice humility?  What does it mean to be humble?

Children:  What does it mean to pray from your heart?

Faith Response:  Together with your family, come up with a good, practical definition of the word "humble."  What does it mean to live with humility?  Write your definition on an index card and post it on your refrigerator.  Encourage one another to live your definition of humility.  Each day this week, at mealtime or at bedtime, invite family members to share how they practiced humility that day.

Pray:  God of Love, inspire us to pray and live sincerely, from the depths of our hearts.  Amen.

Should we force our kids to apologize?

Another great article from the Love & Logic Institute (www.loveandlogic.com)

Ever since the beginning of the existence of parents and children, parents have felt a responsibility to teach their children to apologize for their wrongdoings.  "Go tell him that you're sorry" is likely one of the most commonly uttered phrases by parents on playgrounds around the world. 

Here are some Love & Logic thoughts on teaching children to apologize:

1. Forced apologies are rarely sincere apologies.  While children should apologize when they cause problems, whether they do so with a sincere heart is out of our control.  The best way to teach our children to apologize sincerely is to be good role models in front of them.
2. Actions speak louder than words.  There's a big difference between a person saying that they are sorry and showing that they are sorry.  Saying is relatively easy.  Showing is harder.
3. Children should be expected to do something that demonstrates their remorse.  Wise parents say, "Telling him that you are sorry is a great way to start.  What can you do to show him that you are sorry?"
4. Younger children usually need some guidance figuring out what they might do to demonstrate their sorrow.  Wise parents also give some options, like writing a card or note, sharing a toy or game, etc.

In our Catholic tradition, we have a perfect example of apologizing and demonstrating remorse:  the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  The Sacrament of Reconciliation follows these Love & Logic tips.  First, we feel sorrow in our hearts.  Then we walk into the reconciliation room and voice our apology to God.  Then, we do an act of penance that shows God and our community that we are truly sorry.  The priest is, in a sense, the parent providing us with guidance of what we can do to demonstrate our sorrow.

It is never to early to begin teaching our children about apologizing and forgiveness.  As soon as our children begin to understand that their actions can cause pain for someone else (even a ten-month-old who slaps his mom's cheek whenever she's holding him), we can teach them how to apologize and show that they are sorry (a kiss and a hug for mom usually erases the pain of the slap).  As we teach our young children to apologize and to forgive, we will be preparing them to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation when they are a little older.

 

Lord's Day Faith Chat - 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time - October 10, 2010

Readings:  2 Kings 5:14-17; Psalm 98; 2 Timothy 2:8-13; Luke 17:11-19

And one of them, realizing he had been healed, returned, glorifying God in a loud voice; and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him.  (Luke 17:15-16)

This story from the gospel of Luke reminds us to be thankful to God.  Prayers of thanksgiving to God are some of the most important prayers we pray.  They remind us of God's goodness and love.  And they help us to keep our eyes open to that goodness in loves in every aspect of our lives.

In reading this story, I was struck by a couple of things.  First of all, because the ten men were lepers, they were considered unclean and could not approach anyone in public.  So "they stood at a distance from" Jesus and cried out to him, "Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!"  Respecting the societal standards of the time, Jesus didn't approach them.  Usually, he would touch the person he was healing, but in this case he kept his distance and didn't have physical contact with the lepers.  Instead, he simply called to them, "Go show yourselves to the priests."

I can imagine the lepers saying to themselves, "That's it?  He's not going to lay his hands on us and heal us?  He's not going to pray over us?  Just 'Go show yourselves to the priests'?"  And they walked away.

One of the lepers, however, realized that he had been healed.  This is the other thing that struck me:  The man recognized Jesus' power to heal him despite not having touched him or spoken graceful words over him.  The man simply opened his eyes to the possibilities of healing and, as Jesus reminds him, his faith saved him.

How might we respond?  How often do we need or want something and pray to God for that to be realized only to continue crying out, "Jesus, Master!  Save us."?  We need to keep our eyes opened to the possibilities.  We need to have faith, to believe in our hearts and souls - our guts - that God is goodness and love, and God will respond to our cries.  God is ultimate goodness, love, and life and can - and will - do anything to help us realize and live that goodness, love, and life.

We are surrounded by God's goodness and love.  Despite the sin of our world, which continues to promote poverty and suffering, there is goodness in the world.  Despite the sin in our lives, which continues to promote despair and helplessness, God's goodness and love permeates our lives.  We just need to open our eyes to that goodness and love.  We need to recognize the goodness and love and hope rather than focus on the despair and suffering.  Then, when we experience God's healing power and love, we need to give thanks to God for that healing and love.

Parents must help their children to have this kind of faith.  They must help their children look for God's goodness and love in their lives and then give thanks to God.  When parents are constantly despairing, it is difficult for their children to see God's goodness that surrounds them, and then they become negative and woeful.  But when parents give thanks to God for the goodness and love in their lives, despite trials and suffering, they teach their children to keep their eyes open to the possibilities of God's healing power and to give thanks to God whenever they recognize God's goodness and love in their lives.

Are you a despairing parent or a thankful parent?  Are you teaching your children to be woeful or to keep their eyes open to the possibilities of God's goodness and love?

Faith Chat Questions:

Adults/Youth:  This past week, when have you stopped to tell someone "Thank you" for doing something for you?  How do you show your gratitude to God?

Children:  Make up a prayer telling God "Thank you" for everything you have.

Faith Response:  Create your own prayer of thanksgiving.  Have each family member contribute a thought - word - line to the prayer.  Pray your thanksgiving prayer at mealtimes throughout the week.

Pray:  Thank you, God, for everything!  Amen.

Dealing with Sibling Rivalry

The following information came to me from the Love & Logic Institute.  For more on parenting with Love & Logic, visit http://loveandlogic.com/.

Have you ever felt like a referee between your children?  According to Dr. Charles Fay from Love & Logic Institute, sibling rivalry is a frustrating issue because we cannot make our kids love each other.  Dr. Fay suggests instead of trying to control something we can’t control, we should focus on what we can control, such as:

1.  Whether we do extra things for kids who are battling with each other.  It's perfectly reasonable for a parent to say, "This is such a bummer. I'm tired-out from listening to you arguing with each other. I don't have the energy to drive you to your friends' houses."

2.  Whether we allow certain items to remain in our homes.  A friend of ours said to her kids, "This is so sad. Every time you guys play with that game you get in a fight. I gave it away so it wouldn't be a problem anymore."

3.  Whether we allow their fighting to interrupt our responsibilities and time.  Have you ever noticed how kids tend to argue and bicker with each other when you are trying to do something that requires your complete attention such as trying to talk on the phone? If you feel secure that your kids won’t harm each other, it's probably best to say, "This is really draining my energy. You guys need to work this out or go your separate ways."

4.  Whether we give them "bonding opportunities."  When your kids start to battle with each other, experiment with saying, "Sounds like you guys need some bonding time." Then assign them some chores to give them an opportunity to feel the love.

 And don't forget to pray!  As Christian parents, our primary activity in raising our children is to pray before making any decisions and acting on any of our children's behaviors.  With God's help, inspiration, guidance, and comfort, we will make the right decisions to help our children grow to be respectful, loving, and faith-filled adults.

Lord's Day Faith Chat - 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time - September 19, 2010

"No servant can serve two masters.  He will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and mammon." (Luke 16:13)

Do you ever feel like you and your family are torn apart?  "We want family time, but we have to work and go to school."  "We want to just stay home tonight, but we also want to go to soccer practice and dance class and church choir and..."   "We want to contribute to our parish, but we have so many bills to pay."

We really do want to do it all.  And because we want to do it all, Jesus seems to be harsh in this passage from the gospel of Luke.  "You cannot serve God and mammon," he reminds us. 

Mammon is the Greek transliteration of a Hebrew or Aramaic word that is usually explained as meaning "that in which one trusts." (footnote citation for Luke 16:9 in the St. Joseph Edition of the New American Bible.)  It does make sense that we cannot trust two opposing entities.  We cannot put our trust in both money and God.  We must choose if we want to serve money and have our decisions be dictated by how much money we make or how much we want to save or to serve God and have God dictate how we should use our money to serve God by giving to charities, our parishes, and helping God's people.

In the same way, we cannot trust both our society's expectations of how we should live and God's expectations for our lives.  The two do not always blend.  Do we choose to have premarital or extra-marital sex or stay true to ourselves and our spouses?  Do we choose to give in to addictions of gambling, drink, or food, or fight those addictions with prayer and faith-filled counseling?  Do we choose to keep our families so busy that we don't know whether we're coming or going or deliberately decide to participate in only a few select activities so that we still have time to spend together with our families?

I think it is appropriate for us to hear this reading on which master we choose to serve in mid-September.  School has been in session for at least a couple of weeks.  Our children have homework assignments from multiple classes that take time to complete.  (Do you ever wonder if teachers think their classes are the most important so no other homework matters but what they give?  Just a thought from a parent who has spent countless hours helping my children with sometimes crazy amounts of homework.)  Fall activities have exploded onto our calendars.  Parents are paying out for tuition or lab and equipment fees.  Fundraisers are beginning to demand our bank checks.  Parishes are beginning stewardship drives that call for us to give financially and to devote our time to a seemingly endless number of parish ministries.  September is a crazy-busy month.  It is a good time for us to determine which master we will serve.

Which master do you and your family serve:  money and society's culture or God's loving desires for your lives?  What changes do you have to make in your family's life in order to serve the master that you truly desire?

Faith Chat Questions:

Adults/Youth:  Today's Gospel tells us that money can get in the way of serving God.  How can you use all that you have --possessions, money, time, talent -- to serve God?

Children:  What is most important to you?  Why?

Faith Response:  Find information on different local, national, and international charities.  As a family, review the information you find, then decide which charity you would like to support with prayer, supplies, and/or money throughout the next year.

Prayer:  Loving God, help us to use all that we have to serve you and your people.  Amen.

Lord's Day Faith Chat - 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - August 29, 2010

Readings:  Sirach 3:17-18,20,28-29; Psalm 68; Hebrews 12:18-19,22-24a; Luke 14:1,7-14

"For every one who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted."  (Luke 14:11)

Have you ever talked to a braggart?  Not fun, is it?  Listening to someone else drone on and on about herself is a bore.  Whenever I experience such a situation, I always walk away thinking, "Lord, don't let me be like that!"  And yet, I like to talk about myself, discuss my interests, share my knowledge (and opinion), and relate my experiences. 

So what's the difference between sharing some self-revelation and becoming a braggart? 

The difference, Jesus reminds us in today's Gospel reading, is humility.

If we focus solely on ourselves in a conversation, not considering the other person's feelings or input, we are braggarts.  If, on the other hand, we participate in a conversation, listening to the other person, noting their feelings and input, and then sharing our insights and experiences to enhance the conversation, we are practicing humility.

One of my greatest struggles as a parent is to build up my children's self-esteem while at the same time teaching them humility.  There are times when the line seems very thin.  How do I discipline my child when she misbehaves without crushing her creativity and spirit?  How can I praise her for her accomplishments without her becoming a prima dona? 

The only insight I can offer is to pray before disciplining and praising your children.  Ask God to give you the words to lovingly instruct your children.  Many psychologists recommend counting to ten before reacting.  Rather than counting to ten, say a prayer:  Lord, I really need your help to calm down and handle this in the best way possible.  (I've decided that parenthood is one long experiment!)

In addition to the practice of humility, today's reading also shares some insight into banquet etiquette in first century Israel.  Etiquette, while seemingly being a bunch of rules for doing things properly, really offers guidelines into how to get along with others in our society.  Practicing good manners is really about showing respect for others and ourselves.

In the Faith Response, below, I've noted the website EmilyPost.com.  Emily Post wrote a book about manners and etiquette in 1922.  In 1946, she and her son, Ned, founded the Emily Post Institute.  The Institute studies and promotes etiquette in a variety of social situations, including the family.  Emily, and now her family, recognized that sometimes people need to be reminded how to act around other people in order to show others respect.  Rather sounds like Jesus, doesn't it?

Jesus shared many examples about how people of God should act.  Today's parable about taking places at the banquet is one of those examples.  He tells us that it is better to sit at a lower place at the table and then be invited to a more prominent position rather than jumping to a better position without being invited.  He explains that it is better to share hospitality with those who cannot repay because it then means we are giving without expectation of receiving back.  If we do something with the intent of getting something in return, our giving is not true giving, it becomes about us and our wants.

As you reflect on this Gospel reading this week, examine your own practices.  Do you hold yourself at a high position, aligning yourself with the elite and letting others do the "dirty work"?  Do you do things for others because of the prestige it will give you or because you will get something in return?  Or do work behind the scenes, offering yourself and giving because you want to help others and simply enjoy doing so?
 

Faith Chat Questions:

Adults/Youth:  God asks us to do for others without hope of repayment.  This past week, what did you do for someone else for which you won't be repaid?  Who are the people around you most in need of your generosity?

Children:  Jesus tells us that we should treat everyone as a guest.  Who do you tend to ignore or not be nice to?

Faith Response:  Sometime this week, have a formal meal as a family.  Plan a full menu with soup and/or salad, entree, side dishes, and dessert.  Set the table according to etiquette.  (Watch a fun video at http://www.emilypost.com/social-life/entertaining-at-home/424-setting-a-family-dinner-video.)  While you share your meal, talk about how table manners and other courtesies show respect for others.  Discuss our need to practice manners in order to better get along with other people in the world.  Check out www.emilypost.com, especially the tabs "Everyday Etiquette" and "Home and Family," for some fun tips.

Pray:   Lord Jesus, help us to practice humility and show respect for other people.  Amen.

Helping Our Children to Follow God's Plan for Their Lives

Being a parent isn't easy.  You don't get a "How-to" manual when your baby is born to provide instructions on how to turn out the best person possible.  It's mostly trial-and-error.  The best things we can do is draw on God's love and pray for God's guidance and ask advice of other parents.

My youngest daughter begins college in two weeks.  When she registered for classes, her advisor asked her what area she was planning for her major.  She loves theater and is a good actress, so she would like to get a degree in theater.  But she is also interested in archaeology, zoology, photography, English and History, and writing.  Whenever she asks me, "What should I do, Mom?" I always tell her, "Do what you will love doing."  My simple response, though, contains a lot of hope and emotion.  All through my children's lives, I've tried to teach them to follow God's will for them. 

I have always praised my children's talents and abilities.  Affirming what they do well helps them to recognize the gifts that God has given to them.  My oldest daughter is very caring of other people.  She loves taking care of babies and kids.  She is usually the first one her friends call when they need help.  She loves to help people feel good about themselves. (She is a comsetologist, which fits her well.)  God has given her the gift of compassion.  My youngest daughter is artistic.  She loves to read and write.  She plays flute and trombone and dabbles with piano and guitar.  She is also a talented actress.  God has given her the gift of aestheticism.

Recognizing our children's gifts can be challenging.  When our babies are born, we have dreams for them.  We dream of who they will become and what they will accomplish.  As our children learn and grow, however, we may have to let go of our dreams and accept their dreams.  Recognizing and nurturing our children's natural, God-given abilities is one of the best gifts we can give our children.  This may involve great sacrifice.  The sacrifice comes in letting go of our own wishes as well as in providing for the development of their talents.  Paying for lessons is a financial sacrifice we parents make, as well. 

When our kids are young - toddlers, preschoolers, and in early elementary - how do we decide which activities that our kids should participate in?  Do we enroll them in dance or soccer?  What about music lessons?  It is important that we pay attention to our children's interests and abilities, even from birth.  What draws their attention?  What do they play with?  What do they do while they're playing?  By paying attention to our children's interests and abilities, we can learn what they might be good at and enjoy doing.  Then we can cultivate the development of those talents by allowing them to participate in parallel activities.

When my youngest daughter was little, she loved to watch videos and movies.  But she didn't just watch them, she acted along with the videos.  I knew from her young age that she loved to act.  As she grew older and expressed her interest in getting involved in theater, I encouraged her to take acting classes and audition for roles in plays.  In high school, she was involved in eleven out of twelve school theater productions, and proved her abilities by playing a variety of roles.  Now she plans to study theater in college.

We also need to continually remind our children that God loves them and gives them unique abilities to live as God created them to live.  Giving thanks to God for their talents and abilities will help them to appreciate God's gifts in their lives.  As they recognize their God-given abilities and give thanks for them, we must encourage them to serve God by using those abilities to the fullest extent and in the best way possible.  By becoming the person God created them to be, not only will they be serving God, but they will also experience true and satisfying joy.

How are you nurturing your children's natural, God-given talents and abilities?