For the week of: Monday, January 8th 2007

"A Treasure "

As a teenager, I would occasionally go with my Dad when he was preaching a gospel meeting.  I adored my Dad and, even 10 years after his death, I miss him terribly.  My perception of God as a good, kind, faithful, compassionate, loving God was shaped by him as he consistently lived his life displaying the fruit of the Spirit. 

It must have been when I was about 16 that our family walked into a church building one Sunday morning where he was to preach and the usual introductions were being made.  It was the late 60’s and I had the typical long straight hair and white lipstick (I’ll pause a moment while some of you recover from your guffaws)…looking for all the world like any other teenager (except for the mini-skirt; there were definite boundaries for skirt lengths as far as my mom was concerned).

It was my turn to be introduced and I recall the gentleman who was shaking my hand giving a sideways look at my dad with a wink and saying, “Ohhhhh, a teenager.”  It was uttered as though it was a life sentence in prison without parole. Almost a sympathetic phrase one would hear if receiving a dreaded diagnosis from the hospital lab.  I had been raised to be respectful to my elders so I trust he never sensed the daggers I was mentally hurling at his eyeballs.

It could have been just another frail joke, laughed off by the adults standing nearby if it hadn’t been for my father.  He stepped next to me, shielded his left arm around me, gently gripped my shoulder, looked the man dead in the eye and said, “She’s not a problem, she’s a pleasure.”

Now my father was a gentle man.  In all of the years, and I mean every single one of them, that he and mom and I lived in the same home, I never heard him raise his voice in anger.  When in the company of others, he was a great listener but rarely spoke unless he had something of significance to say.

So when the laughable conversation was stopped by his strong but kind voice saying, “She’s not a problem, she’s a pleasure,” it created Grand Canyon sized impressions in this young girl’s mind, heart and spirit.  It spoke volumes to me about how affirmed I was, how valuable I was to him and how much he treasured me.  It was not a long leap to perceive that perhaps my Heavenly Father felt the same.

While sitting at Dad’s bedside in the hospital during the last few days and nights of his life, we had a chance to spend time talking about the things that matter when you know you won’t be able to look at the face of your hero until Jesus comes again.  I thanked him for a lot of things, but I made sure I told him how treasured I had always felt because to a young girl’s fragile self-concept he had affirmed, “She’s not a problem, she’s a pleasure.”

Your children need to know they are treasured.  If you are a two parent family, I urge you to read the book, The Blessing, by Gary Smalley and John Trent together.  I know, I know, How? When?  I don’t know for your lifestyle but I believe that if my husband and I had had this book when our children were young, and had consistently followed the authors’ Spirit-led urgings, our sons would have been blessed abundantly and some obstacles eliminated early on.  If you are a single parent, your children have no less of a need for this teaching.  Perhaps you can share the concepts with a close grandparent or trusted caregiver. 

I will be praying that you find ways to express to your precious little ones how very treasured they are to you and to their Almighty Heavenly Father.

With Love From a Treasured Daughter,