And so it has begun

I don’t mean the blog, though I certainly could be referring to it and may at some later time. No, I am referencing the fact that I am the father of a teenager. I have been for three days now and I must say, so far it has gone well. No blue hair (not that his father would have ever done that), no girls calling on the phone (again, I plead the Fifth), and there has not been any sign of overt rebellion towards his mother, father, or religion (we will not pursue this any farther). Granted, we are only 3 days in, but we haven’t noticed much of a change from him being twelve. In all seriousness, my children are one of the most precious treasures that I have and I relish watching all of them grow in the unique graces God has bestowed upon them.

My eldest reminds me of myself in so many ways it is frightening. We have pictures of he and I side by side when I was his age and most people cannot tell who is who. Even though there are physical similarities between us, I see so much more in him. He has developed a passion for music and the gift that God has given him is this area is unlimited. Quite often, when no one is looking, I tear up listening to him play the piano. His fingers play more than notes, they play songs that course with feeling and emotion. Because of his ability and love for music, he was given an acoustic guitar for his birthday. Three days later and he has already learned 4 or 5 chords.

As proud as I am about his musical abilities, his heart is what I treasure most. He is developing into a deep thinker (I will address more about this some other time) with a passion for God that I pray will only continue to grow. I am so thankful for God’s grace in his life and for the tenderness of his heart. My prayer is that he would continue to have a passion for God revealed to him and that he would know God as He is, not a God/god of his imagination.

I have always wanted to sing Rich Mullins baby dedication song “Let Mercy Lead” for a baby dedication, but that has never happened. However, I believe that it is maybe more appropriate now as my son enters into these next exciting and terrifying years. So here are the lyrics dedicated to him.

Aidan you're young
But Aidan you're growing fast
Me and your mom
And all the love we have
We can only take you so far
As far as we can
But you'll need something more to guide your heart
As you grow into a man

CHORUS:
Let mercy lead
Let love be the strength in your legs
And in every footprint that you leave
There'll be a drop of grace
If we can reach
Beyond the wisdom of this age
Into the foolishness of God
That foolishness will save
Those who believe
Although their foolish hearts may break
They will find peace
And I'll meet you in that place
Where mercy leads

Aidan the day
Aidan the day will come
You'll run the race
That takes us way beyond
All our trials and all our failures
And all the good we dream of
But you can't see yet where it is you're heading
But one day you'll see the face of love