When to Introduce God to Your Children.

My hot date came into this world December 19, 2005, 10 weeks early. In the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit-level III (NICU)  the parents aren’t allowed to hold their babies like full term newborns. We get a moment here and there but nothing more than 15 minutes. As painful as that may seem we all understood it was because our babies were fragile and they needed time to mature and grow. I could not hold Mitchell for 7 days. Since I could not hold Mitchell I sang. I sang all the songs I knew, quietly and gently over his incubator while holding his foot. God was there with me.  I felt a peace like I had never known.

Mitchell at 4 weeks in level II NICU

It was in the NICU that I really found God. When the first heart monitor test revealed that the flap between Mitchell’s heart and lungs was still open I knew I needed help. I sat on that stool, still healing from my Cesarean section and told God, “I need help.” And he sent help. There was a message on my cell phone from my sweet friend Shara asking how I was doing? I called her back and we cried and prayed.  You see God is Sovereign and nothing He does is on accident. He knew I would have this preemie one day so He paved the way decades before I even thought of having a child. My sister was a preemie in 1970. My three cousins were preemies and my friend Shara has preemies. I have been in a NICU. I know what a hurtful and helpful place it can be. I knew the tide could turn at any moment. And I knew what to expect. I knew the levels of strength of the babies. Black baby girls were the strongest at birth and white baby boys were the weakest. I knew all those things but my heart was another matter. I still needed help.

Mitchells first bottle feeding of breast milk at 5 weeks.

Shara was a tower of strength and she is still my greatest friend and such a prayer warrior. I stayed out of the public for another month after Mitchell came home. He was only 5 lbs at this point and still on oxygen and a heart monitor. I knew from all my dealings with preemies that the first year of a preemies life it was important to keep them cold free. And I did. When Mitchell was 18 months old Shara invited me to a Mom’s Bible Study. That’s not where my walk with God began but it turned into an all out sprint. I was hungry for His word and His teachings. I knew I wanted to raise Mitchell with God’s word but in order to do that I had to know Him first. I went to bible study and I left Mitchell in the church nursery. It was an adjustment for both of us.

First time for me to see Mitchell without tubes at 6 weeks

These days I still attend an amazing church with bible based teaching for the children and for the adults. I still do a variation of Mom’s bible study. And I do outreach to teens and young women now through church and through another bible study in a friends home. God has been amazing and Mitchell is so interested in God.

I am so glad he cannot read this just yet but he says his time in the bathroom is for God, “I am not praying I am just having a conversation with God.” My mother walked in on Mitchell two weeks ago and he was talking to God and explaining what he knew about God.

I went to my room and cried I must be doing something right.



Mitchell at school on Rodeo day.



But how did I introduce Mitchell to God?

1. I had a plan. I knew I wanted Mitchell to know God’s word, no matter what
2. I knew to teach him I could not leave all of it to church; I had to know the bible as well.
3. I started praying for Mitchell before he was born but really in the NICU after I sang or before I sang. I prayed for his health and his development. His father prayed with him too, separately but he prayed.
4. I made a commitment to attend church weekly.
5. It is never too late but I started Mitchell at 18 months old and we have never had a break.
6. He has attended VBS for years, and will be attending AWANA in the fall. check the web for programs near you or ask me.
7. Then I was blessed to have an amazing Mother’s Day Out Program at my church. Thank you to Paula Dominguez, the director; she is an amazing Godly woman.
8. I made sure Mitchell made friends in church.
9. Most of his playmates, not all are from church. We still need variety in our lives.
10. I play KSBJ 89.3 in the car 85% of the time, kids’ Christian music and veggie tales 10% and my old R&B and old Rock and Roll 5%.
11. I let Mitchell see me praying and I pray with him every night. His father prays with him too.
12. We pray for everything from sick friends to help at school for Mitchell to patience.
13. Mitchell attends a private parochial school. I will talk about affording private school on my income in a later post.
14. We attend a bible based community group weekly with other members of our church.
15. I let him see men serving in our church and I have a male mentor in mind for him when he is older. I am fostering that relationship now.

These are not absolutes but guides. You can start the spiritual journey with your child at any age. Just make a commitment and be willing to learn yourself. I attended church my whole life but didn’t come to full understanding of His power and grace until I was an adult. God meets you where you are and moves forward. As single parents we already have so much on our plate and we realize that we cannot do it alone. We need God in a big way. And we need to prepare our children for the future.

Feel free to leave a comment. Enjoy your children at every stage. And be blessed.

Until our next date.



Mitchell presenting me with a flower for Mother's Day



www.christcommunitychurch.com

www.ascensionepiscopalschool.org

www.ymcahouston.com

www.ksbj.org

www.focusonthefamily.com