On the Road to Damascus

Writing about Church School for our newsletter, I am always one week ahead in the lesson plan. A week from today, our children will be hearing and exploring the story of Saul's conversion on the road to Damascus (Acts 9: 1-22). In a blinding moment, Saul hears the voice of Jesus and not only does the focus of Saul's life work change- Saul's core identity as a human being and follower of God changes. His new identity is attested to by his name change - we know him as the apostle, Paul.

I have often wondered what it would be like to have the kind of dramatic faith experience that happened on the road to Damascus. No doubt, it would be frightening, but there would be a certainty about it too. You would KNOW that Jesus had spoken and you would KNOW the life you to which you were called.

My own life of faith is nowhere near as exciting as Paul's. I have been a believing Christian ever since I can remember. As I look back on the almost fifty years of my own faith journey, I can point to moments in retrospect where I heard Jesus - moments of certainty when I experienced call and vocation, and moments when I knew I could no longer be the person I had been before. Put all together, these moments have shaped my life as a believer and a disciple of Jesus.

Does your life of faith look like mine? Or have you had a "road to Damascus" experience? How does the way in which you meet Jesus shape the way you talk about and share with your children what Jesus means to you? How do you hope to pass on the faith to your children?

These are big questions -ones that for most parents are somewhat baffling. Often times the moments of confidence we have in our relationship with Jesus ebb and flow. Some days it is easier to be a believer than others. We wonder if we truly know Jesus enough to share Jesus with our children. We live in a culture that encourages us to let our kids make up their minds for themselves and that prizes individuality. We don't want to "tell" or "force" our children into what to believe - and a lot of times, we don't feel we know the content of faith well enough to pass it on. We want to honor the vows we made at our children's baptisms, but some days we just aren't sure how we are supposed to best do that.

Christian parenting is often a trial and error experience. But it it is not a journey we are asked to make alone. There is a community of faith that walks with us and we are often each other's best resources. I am beginning to plan for next year's Cornerstones program and I would very much like to offer programs next year that will support Christian parenting. It would help me plan if I knew what type of programming would be the most helpful: Is there specific information I can provide? Would having a space to talk to one another about our struggles to parent as Christians in the culture help? Would you like some tips and tools to share faith at home? Are there some suggestions you have?

Please be in touch with me about how I can support you in your parenting. You can leave a comment on my blog, drop me an email, catch me at Church or give me a call. The "good news" of Christian parenting is that we are NEVER in it alone. Jesus walks with us, the community of faith upholds us and the Holy Spirit gives us insight and wisdom when we share our experiences together.

Faithfully,
Elizabeth