Good Opportunities and Better Ones.

Train your child that not all good opportunities are the best opportunities for them.

There are several opportunities that will present themselves to our children (like should I play on the soccer team)? They will often think “this is good” so I guess I need to do it. This is not always true.

One of my sons was scouted out by a coach who was practicing with his team at the gym Josh was playing in. We were excited that he was noticed. It was flattering and we were proud. After practicing with this team that was outstanding, we knew this was not the team for our son. They were awesome but not the best team for him. It was difficult to say he wasn’t going to play on the team, but we knew it was the right thing to do.

One example in my own life was when I was asked to lead a group of leaders and to discuss with them how they were growing and how I could help them on their journey. I thought, what a great opportunity and what an honor. Although, I just didn’t have a peace that this was the direction I was supposed to go. After praying about it, even though it was difficult, I declined. This was a wonderful opportunity, but it was not what was best for me.

There are many times in our lives when we are presented with circumstances that look and sound good on the surface, but as we continue to think and pray, we realize that there is something better for us. We are all designed for a specific purpose. We have gifts and talents that no one else has.

Teach your children to pray and make decisions not based only on feelings but on a peace that only comes from the heart. Our children are going to be asked to join teams, dance at a certain studios, sing at certain venues, or go to a friend’s house your family may not know very well; are these the best choices for our kids?

Train your child in the way that they should go, and when they are old they will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6