It looks like a girl’s college dorm room exploded all over our dining room table.
You’ll find lamps, fan, hangers, plastic shelves, a headboard, bedding, a first aid kit and more — and a fair share of it is pink. Thankfully Amazon deliveries have finally slowed down.
In a few short days our only daughter, our only child, will be off to college for her freshman year. What?! I’m still in a little bit of denial about all of this (I haven’t quite gotten over her last soccer game).
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I’m still wrapping my head around this whole college thing, and I’m not really sure how or when it’s going to hit me. It’s probably going to drop harder than I expect, when I least expect. After all, girl-dads can’t help but get a little emotional over their daughters.
‘I’m toast’
I’m the guy who recently barely made it through the documentary “Good Night Oppy” without tearing up. It’s about a robot on wheels exploring Mars with a camera. Spoiler alert: the rover doesn’t make it. And don’t even get me started about Toy Story movies.
Yeah, I’m toast — but I’ll put on a brave front as long as I can. As parents, we can’t escape some obvious questions. Did we do enough? Did we focus on the right things? Did we even bring them up?
At this point, we’re simply praying the Lord will help fill in the holes of what we missed. We rest in the fact He has a plan — not our plan and not our formula.
Still no formula
We do know this. If there was a formula, we never figured it out. If anything, we figured out there really isn’t one.
We know we’re not alone on all of this angst and stress.
There’s lots of talk these days about Gen Z — and there’s been some hopeful signs. Signs that this generation, on average, is picking up on some of the mistakes made by the generations before them and handling them better.
Lifeway Research recently released an article on a study of Gen Z, church attendance and how they are — and aren’t — living out their faith. The study found that while this generation shows signs of being more involved in church and serving, many still struggle with “theological application” amid a secular worldview.
“While they are drawn to attend church, their decisions and life choices are largely driven by the secular worldview that permeates their lives, which often overrides biblical values,” noted Chuck Peters, director of next gen ministries at Lifeway Christian Resources.
Finding identity in Christ
“Young adults need to know that being a Christian (is) about finding, knowing and following Jesus in relationship. It’s about finding a new identity — their true identity — in Christ.”
Parents and church leaders eventually hit a wall on what we can do. We must accept that we can teach and model the best we can, but there’s a lot our children will have to learn and experience on their own. Meanwhile, we must continue to pray, stay involved as best we can and be there when they need us most.
We know none of the stuff piled on our dining room table, the material things of this world, holds the answers. The Lord does — and thankfully that’s enough.
EDITOR’S NOTE — This article was written by Shawn Hendricks, director of content for TAB Media Group. This editorial appeared in the August 13 edition of The Baptist Paper. Click here to subscribe.
