Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
I John 4:10

      It was a dry land to begin with, filled with perils that challenged the survival of simple, everyday life. Then one season there arose a great famine in the land.
     One of the parents, who had many children, learned of a country of abundance on the other side of the river; so he decided to lead his children out of their homeland so they could survive.
     When they reached the river's edge, it seemed that it would be a quick, easy swim to the other side – then they noticed the many eyes that were peering from the water’s surface. The river was teeming with crocodiles.
     The father turned to his children and said solemnly, “I will go into the water first and they will go for me. While they are distracted, you quickly swim to the other side.”
     Immediately the children began to cry, “Oh, no Father, please do not give your life for us. We will stay and die from the famine with you, but you will not give your life for us!”
     Then the father replied tenderly, “I gave you life so you could have a future. I see what you can become and the many lives you will touch with your lives. It is the parent that must give his life for the child, not the child for the parent. Go, fulfill your destines.”
     Then the father turned and offered himself to the river. The waters churned violently as the offering was accepted. The children swam to safety and the gift of a new beginning that their father had made possible for them to inherit because of his great love for them.
     A true parent’s love for the child always supercedes the child’s love for the parent so the generations can continue. It is a law of nature and the heart. It is a spiritual law as well. God’s love for His children is greater than our love for Him. God gives His love for our survival, so we can fulfill our destinies and touch many lives with the love that is His gift to us.

Copyright 2008 by H.D. Shively

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