What do I wanna be when I grow up?

I recently had the honor to sit and talk to my nephew who has just graduated homeschooling. He was in public school for a large part of his school journey and home for the last few years. He dropped in to visit with us while trying to kill time around town. That conversation has gotten me thinking. We discussed various things but mainly his life, his ambitions and his PLANS for the future. He is in that hard place right now where he is not so sure of his future plans. Fortunately he knows a few things that he DOES NOT want from life or career, but I think he may be struggling with what he DOES want.

This has gotten me pondering, or , as my favorite Sunday School teacher says: Percolating! How does one go about making these decisions? What influences our choices that we make at this age? What can we do to help guide our children into a path that meets their bents and their talents? I think by the time our kids get to this stage our part is mostly done, isn't it? I mean, this young man fortunately had parents that taught him right from wrong and good work ethic. They allowed him to follow the interests that he had and didn't push him into things that weren't a good fit. I don't know where his journey in life will take him, or what God has in store for him. Or even whether He will allow God to guide him into a future that is planned for him, but I see a young man who is really thinking about his future and life. As I look around I can also pick out a handful of young men his age who are floundering with their idea of what life should be like. It seems to me the difference is CHARACTER. AS I have been thinking and evaluating this to provide my own kids with the opportunity for success, I think it is far less a mission of educating with such and such curriculum or formula. I think it is far less about what our kids can accomplish than who they are! Will my nephew make all the right decisions as he chooses a course in life? Probably not, he wouldn't be human if he did, but the young man that I spoke to last week seems to be one who is headed in the right direction. I can only pray that my own kids retain some of what Marc and I are working so diligently to instill in their lives... and that the Character and value of life always comes first.... before academics, before entertainment, and before material things. This is hard for me to remember when we struggle to memorize math facts or engage over phonics issues. I am Glad that God gives those daily reminders to stop and focus on the real stuff.