Teen Mom Dealing With Teens and Life

We Lose Nothing To Love

by Teen Mom Bloggers

Teen (now an adult) mom to three amazing kids who are now in their teens. I'm a writer, speaker and blogger. My life is a miracle. To God be all the Glory.

As I was sitting reading my bible this morning, a few thoughts and questions hit me. One particular question really tugged at my heart.

How do I show love

Lately I've been quite closed up, with very good reason, and I've withdrawn into myself which is an old way of protecting myself. I realize that with a certain situation I encountered, I lost trust with some friends. And the feeling of safety in those relationships. So what do I do when that happens? Well friends, I pull out ol’reliable. That for me is, isolate from them and don’t give too much to the relationship anymore. Is this a "bad" thing? Not sure. I guess that depends on how I'm doing it. Am I hiding away and avoiding? If so, that is not a healthy way to deal with situations. Am I being clear and honest about my feelings? If not why?

I asked myself, how does God show me love? Well, through the years of living me and my way, God patiently waited. Never left my side. Never condemned me or "punished" me. He loved me enough to allow me space to be me. He was not controlling. Most importantly, He was right there when I finally repented and called out to Him. He also did not come with His Mighty finger shaking in my face. He came lovingly, gently and He was kind. Was not resentful or angry towards me.

So back to my question. How do I show love? How do I let others around me know I love them? Most important, am I showing Gods love. This is a goal I wish to reach every day. What am I doing, or NOT doing to achieve this. If I’m holding onto resentment and anger, to show Gods love would be impossible. If I’m going back to my ways, I’m unable to show Gods love.

The other question lies, how does one show Gods love and stay within Godly boundaries? Ahhhh yes this can be tricky if you don't know what God considers healthy boundaries in relationships. This is an area I have been continuously working on.

If you are under the impression that your teen will not make mistakes, push your buttons, or try your patience, then you will be unpleasantly surprised when all of this eventually happens. Handling what has been handed to you means being ready for whatever comes your way.

Do I behave this way to others? I like to believe I do. Is it all the time and perfect? Heck no. But God gives me ample opportunity to give this love daily. And truth be known, at times, I don’t want to…. But I choose to love anyway. For no reason. Just because. One thing I know for sure that goes hand in hand with love is forgiveness. Forgiveness of self and others. How do we forgive ourselves? By cleaning out the gunk on the inside. By allowing Gods remarkable love to come in and remove it. From my experiences in life, this was the ONLY way to achieve such forgiveness and love in my heart.

So once again back to my question, how do I show love? Today is a day that I will be very mindful to my thoughts, actions and words. Do they line up with what God says about love? If not, I’ve got some work to do.

Love isn’t about loving "only if" or "only when." Love is a choice. Like Jesus said, what do we profit by loving those who love us already?

As I've gone through the most part of this day, may I continue on being mindful of my encounters with my fellows.

Lets get out there and really freak people out by loving them just for being who they are. (When this is challenging for me I say, "God loves those people/person just as much as He loves me"). That always changes my perspective

My favorite concluding sentence for morning prayer has become the one based on Ephesians 3:20-21. It says:

Glory to God whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine: Glory to him from generation to generation in the Church, and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer, pg. 102.)

 

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