Imagine yourself being raised with parents who fully anticipate each step of your development. They thoroughly prepare for your right next step and gather the best resources on your behalf. If they don’t know how to do what you will need to learn, they go first to master the skills they will be inviting you to do. They both take the log out of their eye regarding how hard it will be for you to get something new integrated into your life. They hold compassion for you as an emerging person, yet they also have a vision for letting you struggle to learn new skills.
Once you enter into a new skill, they stay with you until you have fully mastered it. They join you in letting you talk about your failures and what you are learning you need to do. They celebrate your small victories. They build confidence in you when you want to give up. They affirm your hard work on the other side of mastering something. Then, they let you rest and refresh before leading you into the next mastery of a skill.
These parents have figured out the secret of helping you develop. They honor each other deeply and work as a team. They keep life in perspective…work is to provide for the family, but it isn’t something they let steal from their house of rest. They diligently steward their own responsibilities to cherish their bodies, souls, and minds. They want you to have the leftover margin to be anticipated.
They have joined a movement of people who are like minded. They have gone all in to become a lavish network…each person contributing what he/she has to offer to the resources you will need to become fully mature and complete. All of these people are committed to houses of rest where you and others like you are given the very best of what you will need to thrive.
You will not become a prisoner of anything on their watch. They will protect you from abuse. They will not allow you to be neglected. You will not be a stranger in a room full of people you know. You will not be abandoned to deceptive leadership. You will not be orphaned by adults who have positions of power and control.
They will validate your heart, respect your personhood, delight in your goodness, include your viewpoint, defend your body, and access your strengths. They will be part of bringing heaven to earth for you.
