Ken recently came in from an errand shaking his head. He'd turned on the car radio and heard a well-known Christian speaker "encourage" parents and young people in how to survive the teen years.

Why are we so inclined to merely survive whatever today holds in hopes of greener pastures across the fence of tomorrow?

It isn't just the teen years.  One would think that writing off six years of every person's life as drudgery to be plodded through would be bad enough, but there are books on surviving the toddler years, surviving perimenopause, surviving mid-life, surviving the empty nest... How dreary!  How desolate a prognosis!  To hope that at best we strive to survive each trying stage of life.

Yes, the world is fallen, but God created so much for our pleasure--good, rich , meaningful things for us to enjoy.

My own are still young, but  we've been blessed to witness families who decided the teen years are to be treasured--just like every other stage of life!   What joy to see parents reach beyond survival and delight in their teenagers! 

As to enduring the toddler years, we believe we can do better than mere endurance--we have fun!

I fall into the trap and catch myself starting to say, "Ah.. it will be easier when..." Then Kieran will smile up at me with his cute toothless baby grin, so new and full of wonder!  The wee ones will traipse in with bouquets of wildflowers, and I'll wipe yellow dandelion powder war-paint off the big girls faces...

Whatever stage of life I may be in, I can say with confidence:

"THIS is the day that the lord hath made!  Let us rejoice and be glad in it!"

Psalm 118:24