Why do we follow them out the door? Watch them drive away? Why do we laugh at their laugh instead of what they are laughing at? Why do their 20 tears cause 100 for us? Why do we put a hand out in front of them when the car comes to a fast stop? And why do we possess a nature to protect and defend them?

Is it because blood is red and thicker than water? Is it because they grew inside us for nine months? Is it because we share genes? Although the physiological similarities play a factor, there’s more. It’s deeper. It’s so very much within us. We bleed it. We breathe it. It is family.

I’ve been thinking about what I can do to show my children more love. Well, those thoughts have led to beliefs and then to actions and here is the message I started with:

If I could take away your bad days, I would.
If I could take away your tears, I would.
If I could take away your sickness, I would.
If I could take away your fears, I would.
If I could take away your self-doubt, I would.

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I read that over and over. As I read it, I just kept hearing take away, take away over and over and over. Although it is my utmost instinct to take away or remove or prevent anything bad for my children and family, the ring to my message did not feel right. Then I thought, “Is this what I do?” Of course, it’s a way of expressing love but this is fantasy style. It is not real. So then my neurons began firing and rewiring. And it transformed the message.

If I could give you anything . . .
I would give you knowledge to see the day as a good one.
I would give you love to prevail sadness.
I would give you hydration, nutrition, and rest to combat sickness.
I would give you bravery to defeat fear.
I would give you God’s hand to reveal self-worth.

And just because my thoughts frequently take me to how we are made, I ended with this:

Dear child of mine,

I will give you my shoulder to rest your head, my arms to hold you, my hands to pray with you, my eyes to meet yours, my ears to hear your whisper, my voice to calm you, and my heart to fiercely love you.

I will forever give you what I was made for.

Love, Mom

And a little sidenote: thank you to my dear mom for continuing to give to me and my siblings all of what you were made for. Then it hit, and it hit hard. We were not made to take away. God made our bodies, minds, and souls to give. We were made to give knowledge, love, hydration, bravery, and God’s hand.

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Let us give. And give some more. Find one person in your family and do this. If we constantly try to take away or rescue, we will be chasing the impossible. Think about it, let’s take the bad day as an example. If we had the power to literally pick up and throw out a bad day before it happened, what would that do? It would give temporary relief until the next one came up. But when we give ideas and knowledge to teach our kids to control thoughts that lead to positive beliefs, they learn to handle a bad day and eventually not even recognize it as bad.

Actions equal results. To take away is temporary but to give is permanent. When we give, we teach, we share, we empower, and we literally become better together.

Another common theme from above is “if I could, I would.” Let’s change that to “I can and I will.” Thoughts lead to action. Give. And Give what matters.

Dear God,

Please guide us as we work to transform our take away mentality to a give mentality.  We can be wonderful givers, but we can not do it without You, for we must be open to receiving You in order to give what matters. We thank You and we smile as we strengthen family connection through You.

Remembering the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said it is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35).