From Prison to Passport

Listening to a sermon last week, the pastor was explaining how we can not control the circumstances in our lives, but we can control how we CHOOSE to view them. He said, “Your perspective will either become your prison…or your passport.”

As he preached about the importance of looking at things through a heavenly viewpoint, trusting that God is good…and sovereign…and trustworthy…I was astounded at the parallel to parenting.

You see, how I view my job as a parent will either make my next 18-25 years a prison, or it will give me great freedom and be a passport– a go-ahead to change the course of destiny.

Parenting can be imprisoning. I remember when Daly Kay was a newborn I was overjoyed to have her…but the sudden restraints on my life could feel at times overwhelming. No longer could I just pick up and go…I had a nursing baby and a routine I needed to work around. I had a new list of priorities which had MY wants and needs very much at the bottom of the list. Even a simple jog around the neighborhood now required planning. It seemed very imprisoning those first 2-3 months. I had been raised as an only child with unlimited freedom and now my every move was dictated by an eight-pound baby.

But it didn’t take long for me to go from imprisoned to freedom. Once that wee one began to smile and coo back at me, I was certain she was destined to change the world. That gave me a passport to begin looking at my life as a mother in terms of being someone who could make a real difference in the life of my child, my marriage, and even– my country. I began to take parenting as a silent revolution…an underground freedom train to raising up a generation of leaders and encouraging other parents that they could do the same! From prison to passport– it was all in how I CHOSE to view my circumstances and my job as a wife, mother, community member and servant of Christ.

When things didn’t go according to my “plan” as a parent, I could trust in God’s timing and purpose. When our lives were turned upside down by circumstances completely out of our control, I would remind myself that He is good and He is sovereign over every detail. Parenting is never without it’s ups and downs, it’s twists and turns…it is always an adventure! But this idea that our perspective can be our prison or our passport is something that I truly feel is critical to understand– especially on the days when we feel the walls closing in on us.

So today– honestly evaluate. Are you looking at your circumstances as though you are imprisoned– without hope, purpose, or value? Or are you believing that God has perfect freedom and plenty of opportunity wrapped up in what you currently perceive as obstacles or burdens? I invite you to truly consider and then act upon the truth of His sovereignty, His goodness, and His grace and mercy. Because although the easy tendency is to view parenting as imprisoning, the truth is that it is a passport to bringing the freedom of Christ to multitudes by how we raise up this next generation.

Parenting is a passport and an opportunity like no other under the sun.

Here is a link to Pastor Steven Furtick’s sermon.