Proverbs 31:8 Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. (NIV)

After reading this verse, I was taken back to the multiple times that my husband and I were required to speak up to the nurses, doctors, therapists, and teachers concerning our daughter’s needs and level of care throughout the years. I found advocacy to be a skill that was hard for me at first since I have a more introverted personality. The Lord over the years has developed this skill in me and also in my daughter so that she has become very good at advocating for her own care going forward.

Parents of children with extraordinary challenges are called to advocate for their children more than most parents. Advocacy may look like helping people around their children to better understand their unique gifts. At other times, it may involve getting answers that are hard to find and require getting multiple opinions from various medical professionals. (I also have friends who have to advocate for their children and for their aging parents who need additional care.) Whatever your need to advocate may be, remember that you are not alone in doing this. Jesus is our ultimate advocate, as the words from 1 Timothy tell us in this passage:

1 Timothy 2:5 For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus. (NIV)

Jesus is the ultimate advocate who came down from heaven and became human to live a sinless life in our place. He went even further by dying on the cross taking the full weight of our sins on him.

As a parent, you take on your child’s needs and wants. Sometimes those around you don’t understand what it is like. They have not walked in your shoes and can’tcomprehend the emotional and physical fatigue that comes with caring for your child daily. Jesus, the God/Man knows. He understands your frustration when you have to explain things again or make another call for yet another appointment. When you find yourself getting frustrated, take a moment. Say a quick prayer (“Jesus, help!”) and breathe. He is always with you, advocating for you and your child before God. He has created you and your child for his specific purpose, and he will give you what you need.

So dear parent, stay strong in the Lord. Look to him for the strength you need to advocate for your child. Remember, he may be building a skill in you to serve him in other ways. May God bless your journey.

Dear Lord, you are a great and awesome God. You have created us and our children for your specific purpose. Please develop our skills as advocates, and help us look to you for strength to keep explaining, asking, and pushing for the things that will bless our children in their unique situations. Continue to build us up through the study of your Word. Thank you, Lord for being our ultimate advocate. Amen.

by Pam Schleg