The Day I Realized My ‘Ideal Child’ Wasn’t Real

Everything was pretty much a blur after that. I was in full-on panic mode. Thoughts went racing through my mind.

Surely this cannot be happening.

This is not what I expected

This was not what I imagined.

This is not what I had planned.

What will he do?

What will we tell people?

What will they think?

This is not ideal.

This was not one bit of MY ideal.

And it wasn’t. I had made big plans as to how my son’s life would run or should run and this wasn’t it.
Nope, it was more like:

He would go to Auburn, get his degree and pilots license. Meet some nice Christian girl (who would just happen to adore me) with a degree and a good job. They would get married. He would secure a job with an airline and we would forever fly anywhere and everywhere for free. Package deal with a big whopping bow on top.

Yep, that about sums it up.

How often do our realities get crushed because we make plans without considering the plans God has for us and those closest to us?

We often have ideals that simply aren’t real.

And when we think this way we set ourselves up for disappointment with our kids, with our spouses, careers and life.

Sure it’s good to set goals—for ourselves that is. But making goals for our children or spouses sets us up and them for failure.

It’s okay to tell God our ideas and ideals as long as we finish with, Lord, but Your will and plans are perfect. May it be done as you think best.

And then stand back baby and watch Him work!

I finally did.

My son didn’t take what I thought should be the traditional path. He took a better path with a detour…or two in between. But those redirects took him exactly where God wanted him to be.

An Air Force career and two degrees later, he has his dream wife and a new dream job. And a whole bunch of learned wisdom he might have not garnered otherwise.
Which was probably God’s ideal for him. Much better than mine I might add.

“In their hearts humans plan their course, but the LORD establishes their steps.” Proverbs 16:9


This article originally appeared at ChristyMobley.com.

 


Christy Mobley
Christy Mobleyhttp://christymobley.com
Christy is a girly girl who chases tennis balls for recreation and at the end of the day does her best thinking in the tub. She’s also a wife, mother, mother-in-law, mentor, and Life Purpose Coach. Her passion is to encourage women to move forward, and press on while seeking God's presence in every bump and turn in the road. You can find Christy at Joying in the Journey christymobley.com, Twitter, and Facebook

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