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I grew up in a house of anger, anxiety and abuse. Our home was full of arguments and outrage. It wasn’t always a happy place to be, and I often had to fend for myself.
Yet even with my dad working third shift and carrying a part-time job or two just to make ends meet, he would pack my lunch for school every day. Now, it probably helped that I got the same lunch, literally, every day for the entirety of grade school: A brown bag that held a peanut butter and jelly sandwich (a favorite of mine to this day), a Yoo-hoo drink, off-brand Oreos, grapes or an apple (depending on the season), and a granola bar. While it wasn’t exactly the lunch of champions, it was a small, consistent way my dad illustrated care for me. It’s probably why, even now that I have my own eighth grader, ninth grader and high school senior, I still enjoy packing their lunches. It is a practical way to express care and provide daily for my daughters’ needs.
I know some people might say my kids are old enough to pack their own lunches, and they’re right. At ages 13, 14 and 17, they are capable of packing lunches for themselves. But it is an act of daily care I choose to provide because it is a reminder to me that I am simply a conduit from God (who allows us to buy the food we eat) to my kids. There’s nothing super-spiritual about ensuring my daughters have proteins, veggies, fruits, carbs and something sweet in their lunch every day. But it is the practice of packing their lunches and praying for them as I do that I can’t imagine not being part of my morning routine.
This small, consistent act of care is a mutually beneficial act of the mundane. It reminds me of God’s provision — not only for the food we eat but also for my daughters, my wife, the home we have and our very lives. And of course, my daughters love to eat lunch! Everybody wins!
I hope your takeaway is not: To be a good parent, you must pack your teenagers’ lunches. Not at all. The focus here is less about the specifics of how we care for our kids and more about the overall principle of taking advantage of the rhythms of school. However it works best for your family, look for practical ways to express worship and practice prayer during the normal routines of life. Years later, your kids will look back fondly on these simple expressions of your love — a small window into God’s abundant love and provision for them.
A Prayer for the Daily Rhythms of the School Year
Father, thank You that all things are from You. Scripture speaks to Your care, even for the birds of the air and the grass of the field. How much more do You care for us? How much more do You love Your sons and daughters?
As I show care for my children in the daily rhythms of the school year, remind me of Your provision. Remind me that all we have comes from Your hand, out of Your abundance. In You, there is no lack or want.
Would You bless my children with Your presence and remind them of Your love at school today? Would You help them to be salt and light in their classrooms, at their lunch tables, and wherever else they find themselves during the day? Please help them be influencers rather than those who are influenced. Please fill and surround my children with Your Spirit and protect and preserve them today.
May even the food they eat at school today be a blessing, a strength and a reminder to my children that I love them, and more importantly, You love them, too. Bless them today in Jesus’ name. Amen.
