As parents, we pride ourselves in providing for the various needs of our children—be they physical, economical, educational, social, or spiritual.  We do our best to give our kids the best.  Some might call it “spoiling”—we would like to think of it as good parenting. 

Sounds simple, doesn’t it?  But, how do we as parents move from being a benevolent provider in all manners of life for our children, to being more of an interested bystander?

It would seem that a good way to do this is to give children responsibility as they are ready.  That’s easy to say when they are young and eager to learn to tie their shoes, help with chores, keep their room clean, and perform those “duties” that are fun in nature—at  least the first time around.  But, what do we do as our children get older and we are faced with decisions about letting our kids go to the movies on their own, choosing their own bedtime, and getting the keys to the car?

Some of us would like to have a clear Biblical mandate on when kids can do what.  We would love to have chiseled in stone as to when our little girl can go to a sleepover at a friend’s house or when our son can go on a bike ride on his own.  Sorry, but there doesn’t seem to be direct answers to those concerns in Scripture.  God didn’t make it easy for us!

What God did do was give us Pentecost.  He gave the power of the Spirit to His people.  Jesus had gone to heaven, and the disciples and the other followers of Jesus were left on their own.  God sent them His Spirit to help them, to guide them, to give them a sense of purpose and direction.  These children of God did wonderful things through the power of the Spirit!

And so can our children!  That same Spirit of God comes to all of God’s children, be they young or old, and empowers them to do great and wonderful things.  God the Father has the unique ability and knowledge to give each of us spiritual responsibility at just the right times in our lives so that we can serve, grow in our own faith, and pass the faith along to others. 

This article was reprinted from the May 2007 issue of Family Matters, a parent newsletter published by the LutheranChurchMissouri Synod.

Dora Hyslop

Eight teams composed of 5th-8th grade students recently competed in the Academic Bowl.  The teams answered questions in the areas of religion, math, language arts, social studies, and science.  Each meet also involved a speed round which included general knowledge questions and trivia.  Congratulations to Zachary Kaiser and his winning team: Alissa Kane, Amanda Gutkowski, Brennan Zimmer, Greg Spletzer, Lauren Zehnder, Riley Kaiser, Joey Seder, and Andrew Kaiser!

Please feel free to join us as we worship as a school family on Wednesdays at 8:10 a.m. in the gymnasium. On May 21 a team from ValleyLutheranHigh School will lead our worship.  Then, on May 28, Mr. Laubsch and his drama team will lead our worship.  If you cannot be there, look for us on Channel 16 on Cable.

Thank you to all who helped to make this year’s Music Festival so successful.  A big thank you goes to all of the directors, accompanists, and parents who helped their musicians and soloists to prepare for this event. What a joy to witness all the God-given talent being used to His glory! What a pleasure to see all of our Saginaw area Lutheran students sharing their common love of music!

The kindergarten classes will be presenting their end of the year program on Tuesday, May 20, at 6:30 p.m. in the school gym.  Everyone is invited to attend.  Come and share in what they have learned and accomplished this school year.