Then Simeon blessed them and told his mother Mary, “Indeed, this child is destined to cause the fall and rise of many in Israel and to be a sign that will be opposed—and a sword will pierce your own soul—that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” Luke 2:34–35
A few days after our first child was born, we realized we were going through the adjustment of our lives. That adjustment made the passage from being single to getting married look like a midday nap in a hammock.
But there was no turning back. Try as we might to return to full nights of sleep and lazy, selfishly designed evenings, they were gone forever.
Soon after Missy came home to live with us, I helplessly discovered that this little person was capturing my heart. I couldn’t wait to get home from work to look at her and hold her.
Late one afternoon, I was lying on the carpeted floor of our living room, cuddled next to her. She was on her tummy, a clean blanket under her head, with her face turned toward me. Her eyes were closed. I studied her tiny features—her velvety skin, little turned-up nose, and rosebud mouth.
We talked.
“Do you know who you are, little girl?” I asked. “You’re Missy, and I’m your daddy. Do you know how glad I am that you came to live at our house? Do you know how much I love you?”
Occasionally her eyes would open and seem to focus.
I raised up enough to lean over and kiss her soft cheek. My hand rested on her back, softly patting. Drool trickled out of the corner of her mouth. As though it were yesterday, I can remember the breathtaking feeling in my soul, not unlike the moment a roller coaster begins its descent.
“This little girl is my responsibility,” I breathed out loud. “I’m her daddy, the only one she’ll ever have.”
What will become of your children or your stepchildren? Where will they go to college? Will they get married, and, if so, to whom? Where will they live? What will they do with their lives?
God preserved the life of a just and devout man named Simeon so he could give Jesus’s parents a glimpse into their child’s future. The words he spoke left no room for doubt that Mary and Joseph’s boy would make an indelible mark on His people: “This child is destined to cause the fall and rise of many in Israel . . . and a sword will pierce your own soul,” the old man prophesied (vv. 34–35).
Mary’s and Joseph’s thoughts must have been a blur. What did this mean? They surely were confused. This is too much for us to comprehend, they may have silently admitted. Jesus Christ’s birth was the fulfillment of centuries of prophecy, and His call was, ultimately, to be the sacrifice for our sins on the cross. This was God’s will for His Son. The sovereign Lord had a specific plan and purpose for the baby Jesus.
Guess what? God also has a singular plan for your child. And although you probably have not bumped into any Simeons lately, God wants your child’s parents to be ready for the task at hand. Your children are completely unique. As hard as it is to fully comprehend, each child is one of a kind.
The Creator of the universe has a marvelous blueprint for your family. And He has blessed you with the responsibility of helping your kids find their completeness in Christ and letting Him shape them to fit His perfect design.
What a privilege this is.