Letting the Arrow SOAR!

"Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward.  Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth." 

Psalm 127:3-4

We have reached a very cool and rewarding stage of life as parents.  We are being able to watch our kids soar.  Our son, Jonathan, is now officially back at Liberty University for his Junior year as a Worship Arts Major.  It is such a thrill to see his passion for music and for leading worship grow stronger each day.

Our daughter, Joy, who just graduated as an Elementary Education Major from Liberty University last spring, is busily preparing for her first year of teaching.  Incidentally, you should see the tree that she made in her room with the help of her brother and mother.  It is a 3-D tree that goes from the floor to the ceiling which she will be using as her reading center.  It's awesome.  She is going to be such a great teacher.

I like the fact that the Bible compares our children to arrows.  What is an arrow made and fashioned to do?  It is created to soar.  It may stay in an archer's quiver for a while, until the time is right, but if it stays in the quiver forever, it never accomplishes its created purpose.  Our kids have been in our "quiver" for two decades.  Now, it's time to let them soar.

But follow the analogy just a bit further.  For the arrow to soar, the archers (in this case, we as parents) play a vital role.  The archer must point the arrow in the right direction and release it at just the right time - not too soon but not too late.

For the past 20+ years we have been pointing Joy and Jonathan in the right direction. Now is the right time to release the string.  Now is the time to let them soar.  And as a result, just like an archer can rejoice when his arrow hits the target, so we can watch our kids embark upon the next stage of their lives, fulfilling the very thing God created them to do, and as we watch them soar and as we see them hit their targets, we can smile and and we can most certainly rejoice!

Thank you, Lord.  It is true.  Children are a gift from You!