The Week that Was

Tori is home from camp. Kat is home from camp. The summer theatre season will end in 2 weeks. And I just realized that school starts in a month for all 3 of the girls. Where did the year go? Tori is going to be a senior! Where did my life go? Am I really old enough to have an adult child? Don't answer that!

I am suddenly having the standard parent moment of "where did the time go? Did I spend enough time with my children before they grew up? Have I properly taught them the skills to be productive members of society? What mistakes will they make? Have they learned from my mistakes? What will I do if they move out of Pocatello?" These are just a few of the questions running through my head.

I think my concerns for my kids have to do with today's sermon. At our church we are in the middle of the Blockbusters series. Simply put, take the top movies of the summer and find the spiritual undertones of said movie. Today's movie was "The Proposal." And Karl, our worship leader and today's preacher, focused on the family aspect of the movie. So he talked about the importance of family in spiritual growth, both the biological family and the church family. Hence the questions about my parenting skills. I'm not perfect and I know that. But was my best effort good enough? I sure hope so. I probably won't know for a few years.

I have raised these girls alone for the past 13+ years, so I am all full of doubt. I do know one thing though. If I didn't have my amazing church family, my chances of the girls growing up right would have been slim to none. They may not have their fathers in their lives, but they have so many father figures at church that it's crazy. Sam and Tori even joke that they will have to pull a name out of a hat to decide which one of the men at church will walk them down the aisle at their weddings. Talk about family!

My church family has seen me through some very bad times, and some amazingly happy times. And I thank them for that, and will be eternally grateful for them. So if you have a church family who is there for you, take a moment and thank God for putting them in your life. I know I do.