Rugged Pursuit
Withdraw to the Wilderness
Thirsting for Knowledge
“My girls come to me ten times a day asking for a new drink. Kids are always thirsty! As they get older, they thirst for knowledge as well. As the parent, you need to make sure they are quenching that thirst in a healthy way.“
“Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,
but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst’…”
John 4:13-14
My daughters come to me ten times a day wanting a drink. They never seem to be able to remember where they left their cup from the last time I got them a drink. They are always setting them down somewhere, half full, and walking away to do something, never to return to their drink. Just this morning I found a half cup of milk in the coat closet. I didn’t even want to know how long it had been hiding in there!
Every time my girls ask me for a drink, I start to feel like we are, in a way, reenacting the story of the woman at the well from John 4:1-26. The conversation goes something like this:
-Kid: Daddy, I want juice!
-Dad: Where is your cup?
-Kid: I don’t have one.
-Dad: You are right when you say you do not have ONE. The fact is, you have had five cups, and the cup you have now is your sister’s. What you have just said is quite true.
-Kid: Dad, I can see that you are a prophet….
Okay maybe not that last part.
But these kids are thirsty! They are so thirsty all of the time, and if you’re a parent, it’s your job to give them what they are needing. Because if you don’t get them a drink, they will try to pour it themselves and you’ll be facing two gallons of apple juice on the floor, leaking down into the basement (ask me how I know).
As the parent, it is your duty to quench your child’s thirst in other ways as well. Kids are thirsty for knowledge, and they need to be getting that from you. They are maturing and learning at a rapid pace. Along with that comes a lot of questions about the world around them. Why does the wind blow? Why is the grass wet in the morning? Where is that firetruck going? They are observing every single thing happening around them, and noticing details that many of us ignore.
As they get older, the questions start to get more difficult. What should I do when kids pick on me at school? Why can’t I say that word? Why are you sad? Why are those people yelling at each other? How did a baby get in her belly? The knowledge they need most is the truth of God’s word. Just as it is risky to let them pour the juice themselves, they could be facing a big mess if they get their guidance from outside sources.
There are plenty of answers to their questions available out in the world, at school, in magazines, on the internet, and no shortage of people willing to dump their beliefs and opinions on them. But is it the type of information that you want them drinking in? The only way to know for sure is to be involved and available in their lives. It is of utmost importance that you are pouring into their lives all the Godly wisdom you can bestow!
Like they are with juice right now, I pray that later they will request advice from you ten times a day also.
8.23.22
Rugged Pursuit 