In family life, we have found one thing to be consistent, to be always true, that one thing that we can always rely on, always trust, and becomes the very foundation of family life. What is this basis for OUR family? It is Love. And we all know love isn’t a feeling, an emotion, an intangible, floating thing in the cosmos that you can neither see nor touch. It is real, it is visible, it is tangible. It is the very core and essence of family life, should family life succeed in our day and times.
In a real physical way, becoming a parent is truly a great act of love. Husband and wife selflessly give to one another, and God thus chooses to bless their union with the gift of new life. The wife, is intimately connected to this new life in a way her spouse can only appreciate from a far. Her body is taken over, in many respects, is sacrificed to nourish this new life. Human beings are so complicated in their great design by our creator. Contemplate simply how one of your eyes works: the retina, the cornea, the iris, pupil, and optic nerve….how many nerves must work together, not alone, but in conjunction with light and distance, relaying all information to your brain so that you might read the newspaper, drive a car, or simply look upon your loved ones. And that’s just your eye!
So much work goes into a child in the womb to not only knit perfectly working eyes, but ears, mouth, nose, taste buds, organs, limbs with bones, muscle and blood sweeping through to carry nutrients to sustain him/her. So much goes on in the womb, unbeknownst to the mother, but she can feel the effects all this knit work on her own body. Her womb is working overtime, her heart pumps more gallons of blood through her body to nourish this child. Her lungs begin to feel cramped as the baby constricts her breathing. Her hormones are reeking a new kind of havoc – keeping her child safe, secure and protected, their effect on mother is undeniable through mood swings and emotional highs and lows.
What is Love? Knowing it is not a feeling, what is it? Look to a pregnant mother’s body when you ever wonder what is love. She gives her life, her body, her energy, her emotions, her everything for this child. Whether a mother is willing or not, the child in her womb demands sacrifice, demands the ultimate definition of Love: selfless giving.
Now after a child is born, father begins that indescribable journey of what true love really is. Mother and father work together, sacrifice many things in the name of Love. They neglect sleep to assist an ill child in the night. They learn new fortitude to teach a child how to sleep, eat, sit still, manners, and the list goes on and on. But parents do it. Why? Why would parents forgo their own comforts, their own luxuries, their own desires, dreams, wealth, and success? Why are there no limits to the generosity a parent will show their child, not once, but countless instances in a one child’s life?
Having a child changes your life. And speaking from experience, still changes a life, even the fifth time around. A child challenges your level of generosity with Love. A child not only demands real acts of Love on a parent’s part, a child deserves a new level of generosity from the parents. This gift of life that God gives us, is our challenge, to grow in generosity, to grow in self sacrifice, namely, to grow in that same example of Christ, to grow in Love. He is our ultimate example of what is Love. Look at a crucifix. That is sacrifice. That is real generosity. That is true, unwavering, uncomplicated LOVE.
As parents we look to Christ for the ultimate example of how to forget ourselves and give to our children, give everything, and hold nothing back for ourselves. We can not say we love our children, if we choose our sleep over theirs. We can not say we love our children, if we choose our own comforts, our own securities, our own luxuries over our child’s health, our child’s formation, our child’s very own soul. Christ gave it all. And so must we.
In a real physical way, becoming a parent is truly a great act of love. Husband and wife selflessly give to one another, and God thus chooses to bless their union with the gift of new life. The wife, is intimately connected to this new life in a way her spouse can only appreciate from a far. Her body is taken over, in many respects, is sacrificed to nourish this new life. Human beings are so complicated in their great design by our creator. Contemplate simply how one of your eyes works: the retina, the cornea, the iris, pupil, and optic nerve….how many nerves must work together, not alone, but in conjunction with light and distance, relaying all information to your brain so that you might read the newspaper, drive a car, or simply look upon your loved ones. And that’s just your eye!
So much work goes into a child in the womb to not only knit perfectly working eyes, but ears, mouth, nose, taste buds, organs, limbs with bones, muscle and blood sweeping through to carry nutrients to sustain him/her. So much goes on in the womb, unbeknownst to the mother, but she can feel the effects all this knit work on her own body. Her womb is working overtime, her heart pumps more gallons of blood through her body to nourish this child. Her lungs begin to feel cramped as the baby constricts her breathing. Her hormones are reeking a new kind of havoc – keeping her child safe, secure and protected, their effect on mother is undeniable through mood swings and emotional highs and lows.
What is Love? Knowing it is not a feeling, what is it? Look to a pregnant mother’s body when you ever wonder what is love. She gives her life, her body, her energy, her emotions, her everything for this child. Whether a mother is willing or not, the child in her womb demands sacrifice, demands the ultimate definition of Love: selfless giving.
Now after a child is born, father begins that indescribable journey of what true love really is. Mother and father work together, sacrifice many things in the name of Love. They neglect sleep to assist an ill child in the night. They learn new fortitude to teach a child how to sleep, eat, sit still, manners, and the list goes on and on. But parents do it. Why? Why would parents forgo their own comforts, their own luxuries, their own desires, dreams, wealth, and success? Why are there no limits to the generosity a parent will show their child, not once, but countless instances in a one child’s life?
Having a child changes your life. And speaking from experience, still changes a life, even the fifth time around. A child challenges your level of generosity with Love. A child not only demands real acts of Love on a parent’s part, a child deserves a new level of generosity from the parents. This gift of life that God gives us, is our challenge, to grow in generosity, to grow in self sacrifice, namely, to grow in that same example of Christ, to grow in Love. He is our ultimate example of what is Love. Look at a crucifix. That is sacrifice. That is real generosity. That is true, unwavering, uncomplicated LOVE.
As parents we look to Christ for the ultimate example of how to forget ourselves and give to our children, give everything, and hold nothing back for ourselves. We can not say we love our children, if we choose our sleep over theirs. We can not say we love our children, if we choose our own comforts, our own securities, our own luxuries over our child’s health, our child’s formation, our child’s very own soul. Christ gave it all. And so must we.
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