Whispers of the Little Flower (3)

I used to compare these innocent souls to soft wax, ready to receive any impression--evil, alas! as well as good, and I understood the words of Our Lord: "It were better to be thrown into the sea than to scandalise one of these little ones."

How many souls might attain to great sanctity if only they were directed aright from the first! I know God has not need of anyone to help Him in His work of sanctification, but as He allows a clever gardener to cultivate rare and delicate plants, giving him the skill to accomplish it, while reserving to Himself the right of making them grow, so does He wish to be helped in the cultivation of souls. What would happen if an ignorant gardener did not graft his trees in the right way? if he did not understand the nature of each, and wished, for instance, to make roses grow on peach trees?

Reflection
Married couples have different reasons in wanting to have their own children. Some find indescribable joy in having children that come from their own flesh, not to mention the sense of satisfaction seeing them evolving from small babies into mature adults. Others see children as a long term investment, hoping that their children will take care of them when they grow old. As for me, I must confess that there is a sense of fear in me when I think of having my own children. This is because I see that parenting is such an enormous and sacred responsibility that needs to be handled with care, and I am not quite confident whether I will be up for the task when the occasion arises.

Parenting is very delicate as every action that you take, every word that you speak and every decision that you make has a great influence upon your children, especially in the formative stage of their lives. I see many adolescents struggling with identity crisis, emotional and mental instability etc. and I realise that more than often, the negligence of the parents in providing adequate care and attention plays a pivotal role in the creation of such problems.

Sadly, many parents do not take their parenting responsibilities seriously, and hence, 'produce' children who struggle badly in life. Worse still, not only do the parents not want to be responsible of the problem, they are not willing to be responsible of the solution as well. Many will conveniently complain to the pastor about their children's rebellious behaviour, and expect the pastor to perform miracles and undo damages that they themselves have incurred upon the children all these years.

Perhaps due to the negligence of parents in educating their children, I come to realise more and more the importance of children ministry. I must admit that in the past I struggle to see the significance of this ministry because I often wondered whether these young brains could really absorb and digest the lessons that were being taught. Yet, I come to realise that children are actually very receptive and easily influenced at their age, and therefore it is crucial for them to be exposed to and soaked in godly teachings at as young an age as possible. Thus, I am very appreciative of the hard work and efforts of the teachers in children ministry.

Having said that, I need to emphasise that parents should take on the primary role of formation in the lives of the children. They should not expect the children ministry or the pastor to replace them as the primary formators, for others should only take on a complementary role. Perhaps we can learn from the Orthodox Christians who view their house as a 'family church'. Parents must see themselves as the primary formators of their children, and the house should be seen as a church where the focal point is always and only Christ, thus providing an environment for children to begin living a Christ-centered life from an early age.