Do not be afraid

A little word to the wise (critical), I'm typing this on our iPad so spelling mistakes are probably going to happen. Sorry!

One of my life verses is 2 Timothy 1:7 "for he has not given us a spirit of fear but of power and of love and of a sound mind." I am well aware that one of my weaknesses is fear and timidity so I often have to declare this over myself. Recently I've had opportunities to speak this over Emma as well. She started telling us that she was scared as bedtime . I'm not sure if she actually is scared of something or if its just a scheme to postpone bedtime. Either way, it got me thinking....

My immediate response when she said she was scared was "oh sweetie you don't have to be afraid. Mommy and daddy are right downstairs and we will always protect you." as I've been processing her fear and our responses to it lately, I've been chewing on some deep stuff. I'm not really sure I've got it all answered or figured out, but it's good stuff to ponder and think about.

One of the things that I really want to be aware of as we raise our children is the truths that we teach them. I don't want to assume that because Emma is only 2, that she can't understand a concept so I'll just make something up in the meantime. Does that make any sense? Case in point: I vividly remember when I was little, I had (ok I still do) have a wild imagination and I would often gt myself scared about something that might happen. My mom would reassure me by reminding me that we were good people who didn't have enemies or make trouble with the law or hang around questionable people so nothing was going to happen. All of that was true, but that reasoning isnt really accurate. Just because you're a good person doesn't mean you're safe from something bad or scary happening to you. The real truth? You can be mother tereesa's best friend but still fall victim to some senseless random act of evil.

So i started to think about what I really want Emma to know. I don't just want to feed her a line to get her to fall asleep. I want to be building a spiritual foundation of Truth even at here little age that she can build on as she grows. So, what do I want my girl to know and what can she understand at two?

-I want her to know that yes there are scary things in our world and it's ok to feel scared. Sometimes the fear that we feel is actually our spirit giving us a heads up that something is off about that person or situation. it's called discernment.

-I want her to know that Mommy and Daddy will always do everything in our power to protect her and keep her safe.

-I want her to know that in those times when something is beyond our power, Jesus is ALWAYS with her and through prayer she can call on Him for protection, peace and guidance.


So we've been talking about all this little by little and she may not understand it all right now but I'm believing that as she grows and develops, she will get revelation about some of these things. I know some of it is sinking in. I could cry every time I hear her playing with her dolls and praying to Jesus for healing for one of them to make that alllll better. It's so sweet and I just keep praising the Lord that He's planting seeds in her heart even now. I can get really overwhelmed when I think about all the lofty spiritual concepts that I desire for her to know that I'm sure I barely even have a fraction of understanding about. How do you teach kids these things?!?!?! Thank goodness I just have to be a willing vessel and mouthpiece for the Lord to work through and praise the Lord there is abundant grace to cover us!


"So do not be afraid, for I am with you; do nt be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10