“These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.  Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.  Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”

Deut. 6:6-9, NIV

Note the variety of “involvement” postures taken from the verse above:

• Sitting
• Walking
• Lying down
• Getting up

All of these bodily positions highlight the sacredness of the ordinary; that is, the huge significance in God’s economy of the habitual, seemingly mundane parts of our daily routine. These descriptors also remind us of the importance of our presence—that kids spell love T.I.M.E., both quality and quantity.

Indeed, many of our parenting joys or “wins” happen unexpectedly “along the road.” As an example, on June 26, 1994, my wife Pam’s pop-pop had just died, and I needed to take her and our infant son Timothy to the airport so she could fly back to NJ for the funeral. At the time, I was attending seminary in Louisville, KY and working part-time as a youth pastor at Grace Evangelical Free Church. That day there was also a huge Christian Music festival at Cardinal Stadium going on called Joy Jam. I had taken the youth group to the event but was disappointed that, due to taking Pam and Timothy to the airport, I had missed some of my favorite artists. Later that night, however, Michael W. Smith was doing a special acoustic set with his early band members. I decided to chance going back to the event that evening and took my oldest son, Matthew, with me. Although he was only two and a half, I knew he enjoyed hearing the man he called “Michael” on CD. In fact, he would often pick out Smith’s album, Go West Young Man, and ask us to play it for him. Matthew and I arrived back at Cardinal stadium about 9:00, before “Michael” came on, and sat down. Matthew was definitely a little overwhelmed by the crowd, so I bought him a bucket of popcorn to keep him busy. The youth group kids loved the fact that my son was there, so he got passed from lap to lap with his popcorn. I put cotton in his ears, and Michael W. Smith came out with his band at full volume! Matthew was a little afraid because of all the lights, noise, and excitement, but I kept saying, “It’s OK, it’s Michael.” After two to three songs, he started smiling and clapping like everyone else. When Michael played the piano intro to “Place in This World,” Matthew’s favorite song at home, something clicked and he looked up at me—big smile—and said, “That’s Michael!” As we were walking to the house from the car that night, Matthew looked up at me and said, “We had a good time with Michael.”

Although that’s one of hundreds of parenting memories I’ll treasure forever—let’s be honest—some recollections are downright terrifying! The scariest moment I remember took place one winter when we were sledding with friends in Morgantown, PA. The sledding was great because the sun was shining, causing a thin layer of melting ice on the packed snow. You could barely walk without falling. My son, Tim, no more than two at the time, was heavily bundled up in his snowsuit and sledding with older kids who held him and steered. I was watching from nearby when suddenly, he climbed on one of the sleds by himself in the direction of the parked cars and started down the hill. He was lying on his belly with his head stretched up and a big smile on his face, heading straight toward the front of a car with a steel bumper! As his momentum increased, I saw no way he would not snap his neck once his face hit the bumper. I felt horror as I realized that there was no way I could get to him in time. My heart sank, and everything went into slow motion.  Somehow, he missed and was fine. I have no idea how but guardian angels may well have been involved.

Thankfully, although some involved parents face incredibly difficult challenges, it’s not all fighting grizzlies! In the end, whether scary or fun, exhausting or exhilarating, sad or joyful, there’s nothing like being an involved, responsible, and committed dad and watching your kids grow.