What if your daughter asked you if she could live in Uganda?
This could easily be a book review about the book Kisses from Katie, but it’s not. After all – I purchased the book on Saturday and lost it to my wife on Sunday- who snatched it away from me so she could read it – after only getting to read the introduction.
But reading the introduction as the author – Katie Davis – begins to describe her journey to not just living in Uganda, but adopting 14 girls left me wondering… How would I handle a situation where my teenage daugther asked me if she could go live in Uganda, Poland or just about anywhere else?
At this point, I want to share a quote (from the introduction, of course):
For as long as I can remember, one of my favorite Bible verses has been Psalm 37:4: “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” I used to believe it meant that if I did what the Lord asked of me, followed His commandments, and was a “good girl,” He would grant all my desires and make my dreams come true. Today, this is still one of my favorite passages of Scripture, but I have learned to interpret it in a totally different way. It is not about God making my dreams come true but about God changing my dreams into His dreams for my life.
Wow! How many of us adults can learn from this young lady? Many of us spend our days following OUR dreams, OUR passions – and sometimes all in the name of God. And who suffers? Our children. Our marriages. Our friends. And most importantly, our relationship with our Saviour.
(Steps down off of my soapbox)
Now onto the question at hand.
I have a beautiful 8-year old daughter and this question scares me – just as it did for Katie’s dad. But – I have decided to prepare for her to ask me the question by preparing her to be willing to ask and accept the question. That question doesn’t necessarily have to be “I feel God is calling me to go and live in Uganda… can I?” However it is seeking to do God’s will – no matter what His will is.
There is a big difference in my opinion in seeking to do His will and seeking to do His work. You can certainly and quite easily do God’s work following your own will. But it is very difficult to follow His will while doing your own work.
So the process of answering those big life questions begins by daily reminding myself of Katie’s instruction. It’s not about God making my dreams come true but about God changing my dreams into His dreams for my life. Only when our children see that in us and how we live our lives, can they accept and follow it for themselves.
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