As a child, I didn’t understand why I had to follow so many rules.

As a parent now, I get it.

Keeping my room clean, picking up after myself after eating a meal, and being prompt to places seemed so strict back then.

But now I realize that the role of a parent is to PREPARE their child for the future, not just to pile on a bunch of regulations on a child just to make their life difficult.

Childhood brought rules and regulations, yes. But also discipline.

When I disobeyed, my parents needed to be there to teach me right and wrong.  Otherwise, I would have made bad choices all along and it would have followed me into my future.

But they were ALWAYS doing it for my good.  No one likes discipline, but there should be intentional love supporting it, and that was the case for my parents.

If I told you one of my favorite verses in the Bible was Jeremiah 29:11, you would probably say, “Mine, too!”

It’s a verse that gives us fuel and hope when we are feeling down.

What’s even better: it is and WAS a promise to God’s people.

The Israelites were being punished after disobeying God’s laws and worshiping other gods.  God had given them multiple changes to turn back to Him, but they continued to make poor choices.

The nation of Israel would be taken over by another nation and they would be exiled to Babylon.

They would not be able to live in their homeland for a long period of time…but there was a promise: they would come back.

Jeremiah 29 is a letter from God promising them that though they were exiled, He had plans for them when they returned 70 years later:  prosperity, safety, hope, and a bright future.

Though they had to endure this discipline, they would be restored.

Just like a father disciplines his child out of love, his heart is for a brighter future for his son or daughter.

That’s what I didn’t understand all those years ago.

So, yes, I do have lots of rules and regulations in my home today.

But now as a Mama, in addition to my children having a relationship with Jesus, I want nothing more than they have prosperity, safety, hope, and a bright future.

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Jeremiah 29:11

~Elizabeth/Betsy