All Grown Up

Well folks, it happens to every child in the world. They grow up. Bradley moved out today. Yep, he is sharing an apartment with Lela. How did this happen? He was walking around singing "Mama, mama, mama, mama," only yesterday. I was trying to keep him from eating the butter with his fingers at meals the day before. Just last week Meredith and I were potty training him. I made his 3rd birthday cake on the grill last year..................Time flies when your raising kids! He will be 18 May 29, has one more English paper to write and he will be ready to graduate from high school. He has a full time job as a gunsmith at his dad's gunshop. He's looking to buy a motorcycle to drive to work because of the gas mileage. I have been telling him no for a year but now.........he can do what he wants.

Isn't that what all of us want? To just do what we want when we want without anyone telling us we shouldn't? It just don't work like that. You see, our life is not our own. It was bought with a price. The blood of Jesus at Calvary. To live for Jesus is to die unto ourself so that we can do His will, obey His commands, and work out our salvation unto His glory. LIVING is to make sure we wake up every morning, ask God to fill us with His Spirit, and not step out of that bed until we are sure we are right with Him and can accomplish only those tasks that the Almighty has planned for us today. Don't add anything or take anything away from His perfect will. Then, the glory of the Lord will shine in and on us and spreading the Gospel would be sooo easy because people would always ask us for the secret to our happiness.

Thankfulness is the key. Be thankful for the blood that was shed on the cross, be thankful that we can serve a Holy God, and tell Him daily how thankful we are and ask Him, "How can I please you, today, my Lord?"

I am thankful for my children. I am thankful that Justin, Lela, and Bradley have grown up to be indepentant thinkers. They don't believe you because you say it but because they have thought it out and made the decision for themselves. They are hard workers that can put in a day's work while laughing along side their fellow worker. They are encouragers and can really lift others up just when they need it. They are loyal to friends and family. You can always count on them. I am so thankful to God for my grown children.

I am thankful for my little children. They make messes and they make me laugh. They are cute and they are learning how to be good Christians and citizens. They keep me going when sometimes I want to throw my hands up and say, "UNCLE!"

I am going to miss Bradley. I am going to cry tonight after everyone is asleep. I am going to enjoy our new relationship that alway develops when a child is grown. I am going to pray for him always. I am going to enjoy watching him make his way in life just as I do with Justin and Lela. I am going to give thanks to God because as Bradley drove off today with his bed and his old recliner and TV, I could rest assured that he has been given the knowledge that he needs to become his own man and a man for God.