I thought I would make a great parent. I believed I could avoid the mistakes my parents made and find ways to improve on what my parents did right when raising me. I think most if not all people believe that they can at least be as good a parent as their parents or maybe even better. I’m not sure where I ended up on the better than, equal to or less than scale but if the measurement is how many times we called poison control… 

Okay we never called poison control but… 

… we had our fair share of trips to the hospital. As many of you know Canada has socialized medicine. This means that we do not directly pay for insurance (we do through our taxes) to cover family doctors, specialists and hospital visits. Some argue that this is a better system, others say it limits choice, still others say the idea is great but the application lacks. When your son seems to need stiches or casts or a visit to the specialist often, I’m just glad the only thing on our minds was will they take him away after this many trips to the ER. That’s right, one of my sons considered the hospital a second home. 

If you have been following my blog… 

…you know I have become a season ticket holder to many hospitals, doctors, clinics etc. I guess, “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.*”   might apply to my middle son more than the other two at least when it comes to his childhood. Stiches every year for three years straight before he was five. Two broken arms, both bones, at the same time. Damaged growth plate, he slammed the sliding door on our van without removing his foot first, some issues with auto immune diseases and some other issues. He hasn’t got his dad beat yet, but he has joined the race. 

My other sons have tried to follow in their dad’s footsteps.

The one that begged me to quit smoking (I did in 1997) started smoking. Our youngest who was born six plus weeks early and not expected to come home from the hospital, beat the odds in more than one way. He ended up being a healthy boy growing up and instead of remaining small, he is the tallest of them all! Sadly, he bought season tickets to the hospital and clinics last year. 

All my boys followed their dad into music and theatre. They all love the outdoors including hiking and camping. They enjoy jobs that are hands on physical jobs, I know I am a pastor but I loved to build things and do landscaping and still do to this day. I call my self-propelled lawnmower a power walker and my snowblower the winter version of my lawn mower. I might need a walker and wheelchair, but I still get out there as I am able because Peever boys like the outdoors and working with their hands.

So yes, “start a child in the way they should go… 

… and even when they are old they will not turn from it.*” They aren’t old, but they are old enough to assume that some of the things they do come from the way they started out in life and in some form continue to this day. I guess I did something right! That being said, not all children will end up doing the things their parents introduced them to when they grow up. I love that my kids have an artistic side along with their outdoorsy bent and their love for getting their hands dirty but if they didn’t, that would be okay. I would still love them. I would be even happier if they would not follow my health issues’ footsteps but like father like sons! I guess I did do better than my parents at raising my kids, my mother is 94 and takes only one medication a shot for her osteoporosis and only sees the doctor for the shot that’s it! Me, my boys… we are hospital, medication and doctor aficion

Wednesday, we had to say goodbye. 

We as parents tried to model sacrifice as part of following Christ.  Presenting the life changing truth contained in the Bible is part of everyday life, but it can also be a calling that becomes your career. There is a cost to live for Jesus and for some the cost is higher than others. I gave up my career almost 29 years ago to go into full time ministry. We struggled to make ends meet but there was joy in being obedient. I would even go as far as to say there was a sense of fulfilment in not having many of the things others had so that we could present the one thing everyone needs, salvation. I do not want anyone to think that I hold one son above the other two, this is far from the truth no matter how much they try to convince me I played favourites (it’s funny how each son thinks one of the other brothers was my favourite). I simply want to highlight one son who this week with his wife, his daughter and his son, boarded a plane that will land in Paris then eight hours later they will board a plane that will take them to West Africa. For the next two and a half years they will tend to the needs of the people who come to them, especially medical needs, and trek to the remote villages to bring the message of hope that can only be found in Jesus.

The artistic and getting your hands dirty… 

…was a great thing to hand down. Even being willing to go into some type of ministry sounds good to me but to sacrifice the comforts they have here and take my grandchildren overseas? All I can say is, if you “start children off in the way they should go*…” they might go. If you model sacrifice, they may end up less than, equal to or better than. I am proud to see them be better at sacrifice than me. Now it is our turn. My wife and I will have to sacrifice time with them as they model for us what we once modeled for them, the call to take up your cross and follow Jesus has a cost and we must be willing to sacrifice to the full extent that we are each called to live this out.  

*Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. Proverbs 22:6 (NIV)