Dear Boys,

-

What a gift each one of you are to me!  You delight my heart.  You make me seriously proud.  You challenge me to my very core.  Indeed you challenge me, but with respect, and I am willing to dual with that.

Movies.  PG-13. R. “All my friends are watching them.”  “With their parents”. “Can we?”

“No.”  “Exception:  if the message, outweighs the junk.”  We set the SAME standard for ourselves (your parents) as we do for you.

I’m sorry that this rule has separated you from favorite hang out times with friends.  Has set you apart, again.  Has frustrated you to the point of cutting strings off my apron (that is healthy, by the way, as long as you don’t whack off all the strings at one time).

What is the underlying principal that motivates us to tow this heavy boundary?  It is the text, “I will set nothing wicked before my eyes.”  Psalm 101:3.  It is the scriptures that talks about by “beholding you will become changed”.  Also the concept of what is put into the heart, is what will flow out of your heart.

I suspect that you will wander from this boundary as time and distance permits.  Most of us have.  My prayer is that as you watch, and your mind and heart are left with unclean images, that you will choose to realize that IT IS NOT WORTH IT.  Warning my dear boys: if you continue to watch movies and TV shows that are distasteful, IN TIME YOUR SENSES WILL BECOME DULLED and your conscience will no longer be bothered.  You will justify the action.  You will scoff at your childhood rearing.

So up until this point, I or your Dad have been the ones to do the Plugged In review.  To decided, does the message outweigh the junk?  However, we are going to try an experiment.  If from this point forward you would like to watch a movie with your friends that is rated beyond PG (and you are 16 or greater), than I want you to read the review and you justify to us why you think you can watch it.  A written persuasian will be more powerful, than a verbal one.  Also if you take the time to do this, it does not guarantee that we will grant you permission.  As you are writing and trying to justify if the message outweighs the junk and you know that it really can’t be argued well, please don’t even waste your time or mine.

I have pondered a recent challenge from one of you.  It went something like this……”You are a crazy parent.  I don’t understand you. You are awesome and yet confusing.  I mean most parents will sit in the same living room with their kids and watch movies with them, that you won’t let us watch. Yet you will let us go camping overnight on a beach alone and surf.  Those parents wouldn’t dream of letting their kids do that.  Don’t you know there are crocodiles out there?  And crazy adventure?!”   To which my heart responds: “Yes, I am crazy.  And yes, when I give you freedom to go surf on waves that could pound you to pieces, in an ocean full of things that could harm what I love the most.  Yes, I am insane….I think, to allow MY BOYS, to go off on wild boy adventures in a land that is wilder and more unpredictable than any boy moment I have ever encountered.  Yet, I would rather loose you to good clean boyhood adventure, that is building in you character and independence and memories.  Yes, I would rather loose you to that…..than to loose you to a dulled conscience.”

Forgive me boys, I know that I have made many mistakes in raising you.  Please know that my love for you is immense.  I am soul tied to each of you.

Mom

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Last Flight

-
Image
Bob and his daughter, Stephanie, flying on a different day in Papua . Jan and Bob It was another ordinary Wednesday in Papua.  The rain had come down all night.  Leaving the runway soggy.  6 a.m. I had finished reading my Bible and I hear Bob take off on first flight.  I think, “Wow, he is early this morning!”  Then the typical morning craziness starts in my house.  The cooking of a hot breakfast.  Packing school lunches.  Signing forms.  Arranging pick ups.  Off to school.  Exercise.  Home. Unfortunately, the freezer has frozen over so much that the door is on longer sealing.  It’s a forced, defrost the freezer day.  Out comes all the food.  Towels are laid everywhere.  Drip. Drip.  Jacob is on his 3rd day of not feeling well.  It has been a week of no routine.  No home school.  POP a video into the DVD player for Jacob and lucky little brother to watch.  I go into the office...
Read more

Change Never Happens Fast, Except Today it Did

-
Image
Today (Wednesday, Nov. 1),  Darron and Gary were leaving on an afternoon flight to the Philippines.  The nicer of our two cars had just been picked up from the repair shop ( it was an alternator this time).  They are at that stage.  Always, something falling apart.  With the mission mobile, we can’t complain.  It is 21 years old!!!!  Darron just popped down to the hanger to fill up the tires with air and I heard him pip the horn at the gate, to indicate he was read to go to the airport.  Yet, he had a different message.  The tire needed repaired…..or more probably replaced. Groan.  There is ONE thing, I disdain as a woman and that is handling car problems.  It’s hard enough to do it in your home country and a language you are fluent in.  Try doing it in a foreign country.  Also to me, it is a MANS world.  If you want to plop me in my discomfort zone, tell me I have to get the car fixed. So off we drive.  Air hiss...
Read more

Anguished Hearts

-
Image after image flashes through my mind.  I see little but “growing bigger and stronger” two and half year old Azarya coming towards me on the gravel runway.  Wanting to give me a high five and nothing warms my heart more.  Knowing that this is the little boy who drank his way back to life with goats milk.  More images of all over campus this little boy waving at me and smiling shyly, running and playing like normal children should.  Every time I saw him, I rejoiced in the second chance that Jesus had given him.  More images of being with his Mommy and Daddy and their JOY and gratefulness in Ayarya’s strength and change as he transformed before their eyes from being severely malnourished to vibrant.  Ida, his Mommy, is my closest Papua friend, and I see so many images of her and I chatting and laughing together and enjoying her new fat little baby boy, now two months old.  Despite that Ida was still morning the unexpected loss of her father and ...
Read more