Be the primary example of love to your children. How appropriate it is that God has given us children to teach us about His own love for us. God seems to be all about object lessons, perhaps we should follow His example. This is for my own children: Jonathan, Christina, Hannah and Joshua.

Because of our love

Because of our love for each other, they were created – a creation of love a result of love.

Because of our love for them, we nurtured them, cared for them, met all their physical needs.

Because of our love for them, we disciplined them, to protect them from the dangers around them, from the selfishness within them, and to prepare them to face the world before them.

Because of our love for them, we gave them all we had to give – our time, our possessions, our affection, our very hearts.

Because of our love for them, we educated them, desiring to give them every advantage available to us for success and self-preservation.

Because of our love for them, we stepped back and let them take the first steps of independence, just as we did when they were toddlers, waiting by the side to catch them if they tottered or fell.

Because of our love for them, we warned them of the false promises of this world, the futility of seeking fame or fortune, and the self-destructive consequences of making pleasure the focus of their lives.

Because of our love for them, we prayed for them, every night, every morning, throughout the day, trusting our sovereign Father to watch over them.

Because of our love for them, we asked for their forgiveness, knowing our love is not without flaw or fault.

Because of our love for them, we hoped with them, sharing in their happiness and delighting in their successes.

Because of our love for them, we taught them about God – the source of our love and theirs.

Because of our love for them, we desired them to love others, experiencing the joy of love.

Because of our love for them, our lives have substance and a purpose.

Our efforts may fail, but our love does not falter, and we leave a legacy of love.