if

We had a sweet weekend of sunshine and celebrating dear girl turning 13...lunch at a nice restaurant with dad today, dinner and "mall-ing" with her best friends last night, a sleepover where the giggling finally ceased with the rising sun and chocolate chip pancakes. Our children all love each other, and each have a few dear friends who know and love them well...what richness for a mom.

I was reading Hebrews 2 last week and came across a passage I know I've read before but without the meaning it has currently.  

I will tell of your name, 

I will sing your praise.

I will put my trust in Him.

Behold, I and the children God has given me. 

I don't know what's going to happen this week. But I will hold the children God has given me close beside me in the telling of His name, the singing His praise, and in putting our trust in Him.

I'll remind them. I'll model it for them. I'll pray it over them. I'll share it with others around them. I'll keep them in the middle of my telling, of my praising, of my trusting.  

Because from my being or not...with my last name or not...with dad's long stick legs or not...these are the children God has given me today, these seven and the many flying through our doors and adding handprints to the windows each week.

The laundry is rarely all folded (and even more rarely all put away). The sink is rarely free of dishes, the homework and lessons not all done...I don't always make the right decisions and the growing number of teens in the house will tell you I'm a fun-killer and a drag. 

But if I can tell these children God has given me about His hand again and again, if I can praise Him often enough for eye-rolls and sighs...if I can trust Him with the little and big things and help them to do the same...

...if they can see that through how I lose my keys. How I lose my sleep. How I lose my dad...

...if all they remember is that I treasured them, and that all my treasure was firmly in Him. 

If I can do Hebrews 2, then I can do this week.