Christ’s Resurrection and Raising Children (and Grandchildren!)
“And if the Spirit of Him Who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He Who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of His Spirit Who lives in you.” – Romans 8:11
You will undoubtedly hear excellent sermons on Easter Sunday that will provide a powerful and theologically deep understanding of Christ’s resurrection. It’s crucial we understand those truths. But I will leave it to your church to carry that water.
I want to touch on one powerful implication of His resurrection: He can now live in us by His Holy Spirit. As our verse above notes: That same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead is at work in us! I don’t have time to unwrap it fully, but it’s an incredibly powerful truth.
This truth speaks to me as a dad. His Spirit helps me raise my children and engage my grandchildren. Let me illustrate this in three ways His presence has helped my wife and me.
Knowing our children
Combining my personality and life experience led me to want to know my children individually and deeply. I would often use tools like love languages or personality assessments. But one of the greatest tools is the Holy Spirit Himself.
No one knows my child like our Father. I often would be praying or thinking about a specific child, and I might get a fresh insight into who they were or an activity that would specifically unlock a part of their heart.
Music is a big deal in our home. It runs the gamut from hymns and worship to classic rock and contemporary. One day, after praying for my youngest daughter, I told her, “Come on, let’s go for a drive.” We opened all the windows and sunroof, grabbed a chocolate shake from Bop’s, cranked up the music and just drove, singing and talking. It became “our deal.”
Protecting our children
Another powerful tool the Holy Spirit gives us as parents is discernment. I’ve experienced it more in my ministry, while my wife had it strongest in our family. To this day, the kids get a little anxious if “Mom is sensing something.”
One time in the middle of the night, she awoke sitting straight up in bed and felt this impression to go to a specific child’s bedroom. Well, said child was not in the bed! A little investigation revealed the irresistible temptation of Waffle House on this child. It has become one of those stories: “Hey Mom, tell so and so how you woke up and went to xxxx’s bedroom and she wasn’t there!”
Our heavenly Father will guide us by His Spirit when we allow Him.
Entrusting our children
Finally, Christ’s resurrection gives me peace and confidence that, when my children face their own challenges, maybe even struggles with their faith, He has them in His care. That realization alone moves me from panicky prayer to confident intercession.
This power applies to tragedy as well. I’ve buried too many children of friends and church members. It’s one of the most difficult things a parent will ever experience. But His resurrection means that, while I feel the pain of the loss and the grief of unrealized experiences in this life, this life is not “it.”
After my sister died of ovarian cancer, I went to see my parents. Dad and I had a long talk. He wept, and we shared our common grief of not having Donna anymore.
When talking to my mother about it, I worried that she wasn’t “processing her grief” like I had been told she should. Attempting a subtle intervention, I asked her, “Mom, how are you doing with Donna’s death?”
I’ll never forget her answer, something to the effect of: “Oh, honey, I miss her so badly. But you know, I’ll see her again and have all of eternity to enjoy her.” I marveled at her unshakable faith rooted in the confidence that Christ’s resurrection also became our resurrection.
I pray in this season of celebrating that we understand the incredible implications in our daily lives of Christ coming out of the grave.
By DAN HALL (MS Christian Living Magazine)
Dan Hall ((MS Christian Living) is an executive and strategic coach to leaders and executive teams. He also works with organizations on team building, conflict resolution and communication skills. He and his wife, Hazel, have six children and four grandchildren. You can reach him at Dan@OnCourseSolutions.com.
Posted with Permission from MS Christian Living Magazine
Photo by Kalen Emsley on Unsplash
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