The Journey 236: When Kids leave home
Read: 1 Samuel 1: 21-28
This week has been stressful in many homes. Stress of a different kind. The stress that comes out with the realization of two wonderful aspects in life. 1. The kids have grown up and 2. They are leaving home to venture into the new big, wide world. These thoughts come because the new academic year has begun. This week, I had to behold lot of my youth members leaving home and going to college, to stay in the dorm for the first time. Kids leaving home to college was stressful both for the kids and for the parents. Stress for the kids for a variety of reasons. They are leaving home for the first time, going to live all by themselves, little apprehensive as to what the future holds for them. The scene in college may also be a bit frightening in the beginning. It is like coming out in the wide world, with some faces familiar but most of the faces new. All these days, the kids knew that their parents was with them physically to take care of all their needs, but suddenly they are thrown into the wide world. In the context of Indian homes, leaving home is very stressful because the parents are trained in such a way that they would go after kids for everything, nagging from the beginning of the day, and whenever there is an opportune time, to give a dose of their not sought advises. You can hear a hundred times in most homes sentences like these “How many times do I have to tell you this”, “When are you going to be responsible” and so on. From eating breakfast, to what to wear on Sunday worship in the Church, to the dress that one needs to wear while going out, what to see on TV, whom to talk, is all scrutinized and monitored by the parents. With kids leaving for college the parents are now short of words and also very anxious. The thoughts like “ Will he stick on to the morals and values that I gave him in my home”, “Will he enter into wrong company”, How will he cope up with the studies” are all questions that linger in the back of the mind of every parents . I think it is here that we need to look at the life of our kids in a new perspective, the perspective of allowing them to mould their life, with the values and morals that have been given at home. To understand what it means to “let go” as kids leave home for college.
We are meditating on the theme “ Transformed Living” and the bible portion that we shall use for our mediation is from 1Samuel 1: 21-28. This is the portion where we find Hannah dedicating her son Samuel for the Lord. But in the process of dedication there are two steps that Hannah does for the welfare of the son. Hannah had prayed for a son, and the Lord grants her wish. Once the son is born the mother, nurses her son and also takes care to see that the son is weaned away from her, so that he could be used for the glory of the Lord. Here is a mother as she nurses, she takes care to see to it that the boy learn to be independent by himself, thus teaching him to take up responsibility that he has to take up later in life. Being responsible is one of the most valuable lesson that a parent can teach their children. This is the first step that Hannah takes in the nurturing process of Samuel. The second step that Hannah does is that the child is offered to the service of the Lord and the boy Samuel starts ministering in the house of the Lord at Shiloh. I think as kids leave home, I believe all our homes should be a training ground in these two aspects. Building up of responsibility and also in helping the child to understand that whatever he does he has to do for the glory of the Lord. As kids leave home, let us as parents and children thank the Lord for the blessing of our home and the lessons that we learnt at home, lessons that will equip us for life.
Rev. Dr. Joe Joseph Kuruvilla
This week has been stressful in many homes. Stress of a different kind. The stress that comes out with the realization of two wonderful aspects in life. 1. The kids have grown up and 2. They are leaving home to venture into the new big, wide world. These thoughts come because the new academic year has begun. This week, I had to behold lot of my youth members leaving home and going to college, to stay in the dorm for the first time. Kids leaving home to college was stressful both for the kids and for the parents. Stress for the kids for a variety of reasons. They are leaving home for the first time, going to live all by themselves, little apprehensive as to what the future holds for them. The scene in college may also be a bit frightening in the beginning. It is like coming out in the wide world, with some faces familiar but most of the faces new. All these days, the kids knew that their parents was with them physically to take care of all their needs, but suddenly they are thrown into the wide world. In the context of Indian homes, leaving home is very stressful because the parents are trained in such a way that they would go after kids for everything, nagging from the beginning of the day, and whenever there is an opportune time, to give a dose of their not sought advises. You can hear a hundred times in most homes sentences like these “How many times do I have to tell you this”, “When are you going to be responsible” and so on. From eating breakfast, to what to wear on Sunday worship in the Church, to the dress that one needs to wear while going out, what to see on TV, whom to talk, is all scrutinized and monitored by the parents. With kids leaving for college the parents are now short of words and also very anxious. The thoughts like “ Will he stick on to the morals and values that I gave him in my home”, “Will he enter into wrong company”, How will he cope up with the studies” are all questions that linger in the back of the mind of every parents . I think it is here that we need to look at the life of our kids in a new perspective, the perspective of allowing them to mould their life, with the values and morals that have been given at home. To understand what it means to “let go” as kids leave home for college.
We are meditating on the theme “ Transformed Living” and the bible portion that we shall use for our mediation is from 1Samuel 1: 21-28. This is the portion where we find Hannah dedicating her son Samuel for the Lord. But in the process of dedication there are two steps that Hannah does for the welfare of the son. Hannah had prayed for a son, and the Lord grants her wish. Once the son is born the mother, nurses her son and also takes care to see that the son is weaned away from her, so that he could be used for the glory of the Lord. Here is a mother as she nurses, she takes care to see to it that the boy learn to be independent by himself, thus teaching him to take up responsibility that he has to take up later in life. Being responsible is one of the most valuable lesson that a parent can teach their children. This is the first step that Hannah takes in the nurturing process of Samuel. The second step that Hannah does is that the child is offered to the service of the Lord and the boy Samuel starts ministering in the house of the Lord at Shiloh. I think as kids leave home, I believe all our homes should be a training ground in these two aspects. Building up of responsibility and also in helping the child to understand that whatever he does he has to do for the glory of the Lord. As kids leave home, let us as parents and children thank the Lord for the blessing of our home and the lessons that we learnt at home, lessons that will equip us for life.
Rev. Dr. Joe Joseph Kuruvilla