An Open Invitation

Have you ever been searched? I remember how uncomfortable I was the first time I got patted down in an international airport. Being searched is invasive and uncomfortable, but it's also necessary sometimes. In Psalm 139, David invites God to search his heart and his thoughts. This is such a great prayer, but also a scary one! We should probably all pause more often and ask God to search us. It's quite possible that God might bring something to the surface that you didn't know was there.

Teenagers can be a challenge. Sometimes there is no amount of coffee to cure their case of the "Mondays." They are trying to figure out how to relate to you differently as they near adulthood. I have often seen parents cross the threshold from being a parent to being a friend and setting aside the responsibility to provide direction and correction for their child. That's where Psalm 139 comes into play. I think David gives us a great template for how to pray reflectively. God is the source of wisdom and his Word is a guide for our lives. All of us should take time to be in his Word and ask him to search our hearts and thoughts as we evaluate the role that we play in raising up this next generation. It can be easy to either be too much of a friend to a child or to go the other way and seek justice from a place of anger or revenge. Before walking into your next moment of correction or encouragement, take some time to pray and allow God to reveal your heart and thoughts so that you might have better awareness of yourself and Him as you point kids to Jesus.