Parents on the Race.
Thoughts?
Hard. Strange. Worlds colliding. Exciting. Fun. Weird. Annoying. Blessed. So, so good.
They came. All the parents came in such force, in their American voices, and their American clothes, and their loud American-ness and just being Americans. We always stick out, but adding a bunch of newbies to the world race bunch made blending in to the culture obsolete. There were 100 of us in the middle of a tiny Romanian town, to say we made a scene would be an understatement.
Parents and children have such a strange dynamic. They have an especially strange relationship when they’ve been across the world for 8 months. We’ve been here, living life, traveling and internationally living on our own. Though our parents are always our parents, they have taken a back seat over the past few months because we haven’t had them here to hold our hands when crossing the streets, lead directions on the map or help us buy tickets, negotiate prices or find food. International independence has become the norm for us, and inviting our very loving parents to come join us was quite a culture shock for them- and us.
I was the one who had two moms come on the race. My wonderful mother and my loving step-mother traveled halfway across the world, TOGETHER to come visit me. Granted their relationship doesn’t reflect a typical mom/step-mom relationship, but strange it was none-the-less. What a blessing it was to have them step into my life on the race. They served alongside me in ministry. They participated in feedback. They worshiped and prayed, laughed and loved those within our Romanian church and the sweet families of the villages nearby.
Having them here was weird. I loved it! I was so excited to see them, so excited to get to hug their necks and share a part of my new life with them. They came in full force, so loving and so giving- it was all of the sudden strangely overwhelming.
Being on my own for 8 months, not having someone buy me a snack, check on me while walking, help me with my things, shower me with new clothes and most importantly tell me to “be careful” or “watch out” for everything in my path was so WEIRD. I didn’t expect it. I knew it came from love, but I was so unprepared for the switch back to having someone parenting me again.
About the time I started to get annoyed, I realized- this is LOVE. And what a blessing it was. My mom, and step-mom, so desperately wanted to shower me with love. More than the hugs, the kisses, the snacks, clothes and words of advice, they wanted me to know they had traveled halfway across the world to show me LOVE. What a gift to give them- the gift of being allowed to love me. And what a gift to receive- their unwavering love. More than anything, this week was a blessing because of what I learned about my mom(s) and the way they seek The Lord in faith. I watched The Lord spark life in them, and they came alive in a new way.
I got to see my mom selflessly love families she had never met, mothers she could not speak the language to and children far less fortunate & much more dirty than her own, but she loved them like Jesus anyways. I got to see my step-mom pray with faith in the Holy Spirit over doorways and homes of families she would never meet. They tromped through the mud. They walked in the rain. They faced stray dogs, dark alleys, public transportation, potholes, gypsies and everything unlike their homes in America. They handed out bibles to strangers. They gave hugs, prayed blessings, and loved like Jesus.
They lived a journey of faith, bringing glory to the Kingdom every step of the way, a journey I was beyond blessed to be a part of.
So, to all of you parents who came on PVT, to my mom and Gina, to the parents I met-
Thank you!
Thank you for heeding the call to come. Whether or not you knew it, you were called and meant to come visit us. You were needed in our journey and we were needed in yours.
Though we may not have said it, or showed it, we loved that you came. It takes a lot to come half-way across the world to visit us, and we wouldn’t have asked you to come if we didn’t want you here. We want to let you in, to give you a glimpse into our lives and into the way The Lord is growing and challenging us. We want you to see our faith. And we want to see yours. Some of us are good at words, some are good at hugs and others are good at laughter and sarcastic comments.
But what you gave us was your time. You came. You spent time with us. And that is what we wanted, no matter how much or how little we gave you, we wanted the time that we had.
And we were blessed to have you serve alongside us. We are blessed to see your love, your faith, your trust and self-less proclamation of the Kingdom in tangible ways. Our faith is encouraged by your willingness to come and serve.
Sure, sometimes you annoy us. And sometimes we annoy you. Sometimes we don’t see eye-to-eye, and you definitely don’t get us, and we will never understand you. We will make mistakes you won’t be proud of, and you’ll leave us broken in ways you didn’t know you could. As we looked around the circle of parents, while we sat at your feet, we may have thought you were a strange bunch. BUT, at the end of the day…
WE ARE PROUD TO CALL YOU OURS.
We take it all. The good, the bad, the hard, the funny, silly and sweet. YOU, exactly how you are, running after Jesus, that is who we are proud to call our parents.
First, accept that we love you. Know it deep within yourself. And know we know you love us- but don’t forget to tell us. We want your love, we want your advice and your eyes to see the world. But, you spent so long learning how to shower all of your goodness on us, you don’t know how to receive it back. We have good things, new things, advice and love we want to share with you. WE WANT to love you the way you loved us so well for so long.
Let us in, let us help, love us well and let us love you as best as we can back. And maybe, just maybe, we’ll make it through this journey called life with more from each other than we both thought possible. All in the Lord’s timing, He works miracles for the goodness of the one’s He loves.
“Don’t you see that children are God’s best gift? the fruit of the womb his generous legacy? Like a warrior’s fistful of arrows are the children of a vigorous youth. Oh, how blessed are you parents, with your quivers full of children!
Your enemies don’t stand a chance against you; you’ll sweep them right off your doorstep.”
Psalm 127: 3-5 (MSG)
The Bible says children are like arrows, a blessing for parents to send out into the world to fight for the Kingdom. Arrows, if shot straight and true, will not fail in battle. You have raised us and sent us out well. Trust us and our path of truth and know that you are loved and blessed.
We are proud to fight for the Kingdom alongside you now. Our parents, our brothers and sisters forever. We love you.
