Last Saturday night Michael Phelps won his eighth gold medal of these 29th Olympic Games, breaking a record Mark Spitz had held for 36 years. Of course he had already won more medals, and more gold medals than anyone in history. He had also won more individual gold medals in a single Olympics the night before, when he touched one one-hundredth of a second ahead of the Serbian, Cavic in the 100 meter butterfly competition. But that eighth gold was what he had trained for, what had been his quest for 12 of his 23 years. He has rightfully been hailed as one of the three or four greatest athletes of the modern era. He has been compared to Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, Tiger Woods, even Secretariat. What seems to me to be a feat equal to his accomplishments in those 50 meter lanes is the way he seems to have balanced fierce competitiveness and sincere humility. They should give gold medals for that.Behold, children are a gift of the Lord; the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Psalm 127.3-4
The experts have pointed out that as a physical specimen, with his flexible joints and superior wing-span, Michael Phelps is perfectly formed to be a swimmer. With my natural stoop, and bony fingers I think I am perfectly formed to sort through boxes of old books. And yet I believe I know something of what Michael Phelps felt when he won his eighth gold medal.
Seven years ago, when our youngest daughter was baptized, the feeling of relief and accomplishment was overwhelming. It was equally unexpected. My wife said she felt the same way. We had been given three daughters, three gifts from God. The older two had already been baptized. At that time they were 9, 11 and 14 – with every possibility ahead of them. And yet a burden was lifted I didn’t know I was bearing. A sense of completion descended I wasn’t expecting. And this was right. It was the way it should be.
We had been given three daughters, three gifts from God. Our primary responsibility was to give them back to Him. This we had done.
The passage above is brief, but dense with meaning. It says our children belong to God before they belong to us. It says that like the archer to the arrow, we are responsible for providing direction and power. It says that like the archer to the arrow we have to let go.
Seven of our youth have been baptized this summer. Fourteen parents have experienced the same mixture of joy, relief, and accomplishment – perhaps in an unexpected measure of fullness. We have all rejoiced – our family here and the angels in heaven.
I want to encourage all our parents to share the same joy, and to encourage their own children to be baptized. If they are young and lack understanding, encourage them to greater understanding. If they are older and lack urgency, encourage them to urgency. If they are shy and doubting, encourage them to faith and action. God’s people have always had the responsibility to share faith with their children (Deuteronomy 6). The New Testament makes clear that the training and discipline we are charged to provide must be given in a nurturing way (Ephesians 6.4, Colossians 3.21). Sharing our faith with our children can never be about discouragement, or winning a test of wills. But it must be something we do actively and deliberately.
This is the charge we were given when a child was born, and we received the gift of God. Successfully keeping that charge is greater than any number of medals.
