Let Him Be the Center

For a woman, it's a beautiful thing to look back and know you did your best as a mother or a wife, to know you poured into those lives with much love and gusto.  I'm sure that's the same for a man about being a husband and a father.  How amazing it is to feel that everything you did, even the tough things, was for your family's benefit.  I know most definitely there were hard days too and times when you felt the guilt for not measuring up to the expectations you or society have.  Overall though, we do the best we can and know how.  

Can I give you a piece of advice?  Your kids will grow up, move out, have careers, have families of their own, and make their own decisions.  As well they should.  If you raised them to be responsible for themselves then you did your job.  You will no longer be at the center of their lives, and they shouldn't be the center of yours either.  Truth is, you may or may not grow old with the one you married.  Even if you played all your cards right, there are no guarantees.  We each have a will of our own and the right to exercise it (within reason).  Also, there's this thing that happens when your body wears out due to age or sickness, or in an accident, called death.  We don't want it or ask for it but it happens.  What I am trying to say is make sure "people" are not your center.  Make sure your identity is not just Mother, Father, Spouse, etc, because you may not be so all your days on earth.  So have your own hobbies and interests to pour into.  Make good friends while recognizing their limitations.  Make your own decisions.  Develop and be your own person.  My most valuable recommendation is to make God the center of your life while you carry out these roles.  Then, He will be your Sustainer, your Comforter, your Healer, your Provider, your Peace, when you find yourself alone for whatever reason, whether it be an empty nest, a breakup, a divorce, a death.  We need each other, we need community and fellowship, but we cannot make idols of people.  Family members and friends can choose to leave, they die, they are fallible, and the list goes on.  But not Him, not God...He will never leave or forsake you!  ❤️