As a teenager, my daughter had her pick of boys. We made sure we knew who she dated and where she went, telling her to avoid trouble and, if anything was amiss, to call.  I promised to pick her up, no questions asked.

One night at a party trouble developed. She called saying “Dad you told me to call if I had a problem, well this party is out of control.”  My first inclination was to call my cousin, a cop, and tell him to go there. But, since she always was trustworthy, I decided to let her go to a diner with her date and be home by 10 pm.

She came home early and we didn’t talk about it again, until the next time she wanted to go to someone’s home. We reminded her to be discerning about who would be there. We trusted her to keep within parental boundaries and stay out of trouble. She knew we loved her unconditionally; we shared our love and were quick to forgive if she made a youthful mistake. We were confident, knowing she had a firm Christian faith.

As we all age from youth to middle age and then old age, our Heavenly Father tells us in His Word to put our faith in Him. He promises to always provide a rescue when needed. He offers forgiveness for indiscretions, healing for distress, and guidance from His Spirit. All the while He loves us unconditionally as we mature from a childlike faith to mature Christian adults. We are blessed to learn from His “Word”, from Christian teachers, and from great people of faith around us.

Indeed, Abba Father loves all of us unconditionally and is the best example of how we should love our children and raise them to maturity as Christians by balancing discipline, love and forgiveness.

Remember God loves YOU unconditionally.

Joey

“When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.” 1 Corinthians 13:11

“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:18-19