Boy, Oh Boy!

Well, in case you haven't heard yet, we found out at the beginning of June that we're expecting another boy!  At first I was disappointed.  Even though I had refused to let myself look at any of that pink stuff hanging in the aisles of Walmart, Target and Kohls, I had hopes of being able to do so.  But God in His wisdom has chosen to give us our 5th boy, 4th, prayerfully, to raise.

I had fully accepted our new little one was a boy, but I hadn't fully embraced with enthusiasm what the next 18+ years of our life would look like until going to the homeschooling convention a couple of weeks ago.  I totally got and get that boys are a ball of energy and passion and willfulness (at least ours are), but I didn't understand the importance of all of that inner boyness until I heard Jessica Hulcy give her opening talk.

Jessica Hulcy is the author of the Konos curriculum and the mother of four boys.  Her talk was entitled, Stay the Course - Stand Your Ground.  She started by giving examples throughout history that people, specifically men, Stood Firm, Exposed Evil, and Taught the Truth (SET).  Their actions had dramatic effects on life as we know it, even though we have long since forgotten them and what they did.  She encouraged us as we're raising our children to teach them to "discern false rhetoric and stand for the truth" and "raise a generation of leaders to be an example to those around them."

These ideas are important whether raising girls or boys.  But boys are unique in that they will be men, if raised correctly.  Men have been granted by God to lead, to be the head of their family.  Jessica said, "...to raise boys is raising the head of a household."  That hit home with me.  We're not raising our boys just to be men, but heads of their household, leaders of their wives and children.  Their influence on the generations to come has the potential to be huge!

Pressure on!  But in a good way.  I feel energized and empowered as I look ahead to raising these boys.  Even though I have my doubts about my/our abilities, God is the one who has entrusted us with these lives.  They all are His children and through His power we can mold all of those messy aspects of boyness and create men of courage, honor, persistence, and fortitude who will stand firm on their belief in God, expose the evil in the world around them, and teach the truth to their children.

Now I just need to live in God's strength as I daily love on and train Sammy, Ben, and Jon (and the littlest one that we look forward to meeting in October) - it certainly can get rough sometimes.  Pray for us.



And just so that Livvy is not forgotten in all of this, for she surely is not.  She is the perfect big sister to all of her brothers.  We are doing our best to raise her to be a godly woman and all that that entails - which will just have to be written about at another time.  This post was specifically to share my heart for my boys...but I'll at least share a picture of our one and only, so far, daughter.

Comments

Lisa said…
Jenn, we're experiencing some "growth opportunities" with our soon to be teenager. And that's what God has put on my heart too. Teaching him God's design for families.
I love your kids and enjoy hearing about how God is growing your family.
Mitchell Family said…
Jenn,

Congratulations on another precious boy! I didn't realize you were expecting again. That is such wonderful news! Congrats again!

: ) Julie

Popular Posts

The Cutlip Family