Jacob’s vocabulary word last week was forsake.   When I searched for the word forsake at kingjamesbibleonline.org today, I discovered that it is found in 57 different verses.  Wow, I thought.  That was a pretty good word to instill in Jacob’s mind (and mine).   I honestly had never looked up the definition of the word forsake before last week.  I am sure I have used context clues to figure out its meaning many times or maybe I just skipped over it and continued reading.  But, learning the true definition with Jacob this week has been a true blessing.  Below is a little story that explains why.

Yesterday, after church, Jacob, one of his friend’s, and Jaden were running a little lamb around in the barn lot.   They were trying their best to catch him, round him up, and tame him down.   Jacob got a rope around his neck a few times, but the lamb would proceed to drag him through the field on his bottom.  It was a little comical and a little disheartening to watch.  They were trying so hard.  So, I decided I would try and help them out before lunch was ready.  My wonderful husband volunteered to make lunch.  🙂 How lucky am I?

Anyway, we ran and chased, and we chased and ran some more.   We tried to work together and block him any way we knew how.  James had also joined in by this point.   He was a little cuter than the rest of us with his pudgy little hands stretched out trying to block that feisty lamb.  We all seemed to be getting more hot and tired than the lamb.  So, one by one all the kids except Jacob threw in the white flag and surrendered.  Jacob did not want to quit, and in my heart, I didn’t want to abandon the task at hand either.  But, tummy growls got the best of both of us.  We had to give up and call it quits.  I told Jacob to tell the lamb that we weren’t giving up on him, but we had to take a break.  He looked right at the lamb and said, “I will not forsake you.”  My heart glowed a little brighter when I heard him say those words.  He had remembered the meaning of his vocabulary word and actually used it!

As I walked back to the house, Jacob’s words rang in my ears.  Then, I looked back at the lamb.  As I glanced at him and realized how much he had grown in 4 short months, it suddenly hit me that maybe the lamb does feel forsaken, and Jacob should have started training him when he was much younger.  That’s when Proverbs 22:6 flooded my mind: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”  Wow!  God had used that little lamb to teach me an important lesson.  Just as Jacob should have taken the time to teach that lamb when it was much smaller, God opened my eyes and helped me see that maybe I am not doing all that needs to be done to train up my children in a way that pleases Him while they are young.  Are my harsh words or quick temper helping them see Him through me?  Am I truly enjoying the time that the Lord has given me with them, or am I always bringing up the little things that annoy me on a hectic day?  Is being able to train my children in a way that pleases God a blessing to me? Yes!  It should be!

(Happily resting and hiding out!)

So, this week, I will be more cautious with my words, take time to give more hugs and kisses, and actually enjoy what God has blessed me with.  Through Jacob uttering the word forsake to his little untrained lamb while it was being disobedient and free spirited, the Lord has taught me this:  “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” Hebrews 13:5

With His help, I am slowly learning to be content with what He has chosen me to do.  I am slowly learning the proper way to train up my children while they are still small with a quiet spirit that is pleasing to Him.  I don’t want them to be half grown and then realize how my heart needed to change in order to train them properly in His love.  Jacob’s lamb has taught me that if I wait too long to train through love, my chance will have passed me by.  Yes, with a lot of hard work and compassion, his lamb’s free spirit can still be tamed, but I am afraid our journey will be much harder now that he is older.  I want my children to learn by example.  I hope that I can teach them to obey God’s commandments because I have been willing to not only teach His commandments, but I have not forsaken them myself.

(Jaden’s mood ring on my finger after chasing the lamb.  The mood I will achieve this week with the Lord’s help! Blue = calm, relaxed, loveable)

My prayer:  Dear Lord, please show me how to have a meek spirit in order to train my children to love you.  Please help them to understand that you will never forsake them; therefore, they should never forsake you!! Amen!

**I linked this post to http://www.time-warp-wife.blogspot.com/.