Hello!  I am so thrilled to be communicating to you for the first time through this blog post.  I know your life is so busy, as is mine, and I am honored that you chose to spend a moment here. Although I claim no special knowledge that is overwhelmingly smart or worthwhile, I am continually praying that God will reveal himself to you during my blog posts. He is SO BEYOND SMART and WORTHWHILE and I hope that you are able to benefit from His words (even through this tired vessel of an ordinary mom).

What I hope for you to consider in this first blog is that it is okay for you to slow down and let God determine your purpose and pace of life based on your situation.  As a parent of two children with special-needs, I know that keeping God’s perspective is challenging in our fast-paced society. It is easy to feel like we are always behind in the race to keep our children and families on the “typical treadmill” so we can keep pace with the demands of society. Can you relate to this?

Let’s consider today if keeping this pace really so important.  Why or why not?   Well, let me first say that our society is not permanent or ideal and it would be good for us to remember that as we try to meet its demands. The problem is that society is so “in our face” all the time, that we have trouble seeing the bigger picture beyond. This reminds me of the new puppy at our home. She always wants to be in our faces, and at the center of our attention.  If we turn away from her, she will often chase after us, nipping at our heels.  Society is so that way.  But to keep sane in our home, we occasionally need to put our precious puppy aside (in her crate) so we can prioritize our time and energy. In a similar way, we need to purposely put the urgent call of society aside, and look at the bigger picture beyond.

It has taken me many years of raising my children to realize that God never intended us to walk on this treadmill of keeping up with society. How our children fare on earth is important to God, but He is much more concerned about preparing their hearts and minds for eternity. He wants us to help our children train for the race He has set before us—that is, to keep our FAITH in Him, to keep HOPE for the future, and to LOVE God with all our heart. He wants us to persevere as we learn and teach our children to understand and know Jesus. And He wants to infuse us with His power to take these messages of hope and love to others in our circle of influence.

This is an enormous calling, and we do not expect to do it perfectly.  The reason I  founded this ministry is because I struggled for so long to find the unwavering hope and peace God promises us. Now that I have glimpsed it, I want to share with you and I hope that together we will encourage and strengthen one another.  I thank you for joining us here at Persevering Parent.  Talk to you soon.

Karen