It is a Present to be Present, mama

Tonight we will talk about how being present is a gift to our families. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Good evening, mamas, and welcome back to Midlight, Your Light in the Middle of the Night. This week with my older kiddos, we have been learning about homophones in homeschool. And it has been a fun week of listening to them just randomly tell me random words, and they'll say, Oh, mom, like high and high out of nowhere. And I'm like, Yes, that's a homophone. And they'll say, Yeah, like son and son, S-U-N-S-O-N. And I say, Yeah, you're right, that's also a homophone. And it's been kind of a fun little thing that's been happening in our home this week. And as I was working on homophones with the children, I thought of a homophone for you and for me as mamas. And it was the word present. And I thought to myself, isn't it true that to be present is a present? When my oldest daughter was younger in her teen years, she made me a sign that said, Wherever you are, be all there. And she made it with a router, and she painted it for me, and I put it in my kitchen. And every time I would look at it, I would remember how important it was to be present with the person in front of me. And I think of Jesus in this. I think of how Jesus was on his way to see people or on his way to do something often in the Bible. But the person who mattered the most to him was the person right in front of him. That was his ministry in that moment, was the person standing in front of him. And I realize that we are like that as mamas. We have so many things to go do and people to talk to and people to see, things that are pressing. But also our ministry is right in front of us with the very people that God puts right there. And right now, mama, for you, that might just be the tiniest of people. That might just be a little one that you are tending to and is in front of you right now. Whether it's the middle of the night or any time of the day, the one in front of us deserves us to be present with them. So I thought of a Bible verse to share with you tonight, in addition to the idea that what Jesus did when he walked on the earth was made the person in front of him, his ministry. We can do that with our children, we can do that with our spouses, we can do that with strangers or friends, but whoever God put in front of you is important. So I would encourage you to not overlook whether it's the smallest ones, the babies, or maybe perhaps your husband, just try to be so present with them, because it really is a gift to feel heard and seen, isn't it? Well, tonight I want to share a Bible verse with you starting in Deuteronomy chapter six. And it actually starts in verse one, and I'm gonna read it to you because I think it's important to understand the context when I get a little further. So just listen as I read to you, Mama. Deuteronomy chapter six and verse one says, Now this is the commandment, and these are the statutes and judgment which the Lord your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess, that you may fear the Lord your God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments which I command you, and your son and your grandson all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. Therefore, hear, O Israel, and be careful to observe it, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the Lord God of your fathers has promised you, a land flowing with milk and honey. This is when they were getting ready to go into the promised land, which they had been looking for for over forty years. And in verse four it says, Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And here's the part I wanted to bring to light tonight, and it says in verse six, and these words, which I command you today, shall be in your heart, you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. If you want to read that for yourself, it's found in Deuteronomy chapter six, verses one through nine. And why did I pick this verse tonight? I picked this verse tonight because God is showing us as mamas how we should teach our children about the Lord and His goodness. The Lord had been so good to the children of Israel in this time and was bringing them into the promised land that he had given them. And he told them that as you go in, remember these things I've done and write these words on your heart. Make it be a part of who you are and how you live. And so tonight I want to encourage you to share your faith with your children. Share your faith with your babies. It's an important part of our world to give them the rock solid foundation of the word in their lives, meaning reading the Bible to your children or sharing Bible stories with them day and night while you brush your teeth, while you eat breakfast, when you're taking them places, it's important to share what good the Lord has done with your children. One thing we do at our home each night is we share highlights and lowlights at our dinner table. So we go around the table and everybody gets an opportunity to share the best part of their day and the hardest part of their day. And I make it an intentional thing to bring the glory back to God and my heart of thankfulness for what he's done, even in a hard day. I try to remember Deuteronomy in chapter six, even when things are difficult, I want my children to understand the goodness of God in the land of the living. Even when things are difficult, the Lord is with us. So I want to encourage you tonight to write these things on the hearts of your children as you share with them what God has done in your own life and just who the truth of Him is in your faith. And so I just encourage you tonight, mamas, to be present with the person in front of you. Be present with your children. We live in such a time where phones are actively in our hands and our attention can be distracted, but it is such a blessing to our families when we put our phones down and we look into those precious little faces and we're present with them. What a gift! I know I love it when someone is present with me, whether it's my children or my friends or my husband. I just really enjoy that connection. So I encourage you tonight to look for ways to connect with those that God has entrusted to you. Maybe where you are with your little one, connection and being present and sharing the goodness of the Lord could look just as simple as singing a song of thanksgiving as you feed your baby. Even something as simple as Jesus loves me. That is a beautiful song to sing over your babies as you feed them tonight. You can pray over your babies, you can talk to God while you hold them in your arms, you can sing a favorite worship song. I just encourage you to remember to write the truth of God's love on their hearts and yours. Thank you, Mama, for joining me tonight on midlight. I'm gonna leave you with a prayer tonight. May the Lord bless you and keep you, make his face to shine upon you, be gracious unto you and give you peace. Amen. And that comes from Numbers 6, 24 through 26. Until next time, Mamas, take care.