A 12-Year-Old Counselor??

I kinda know what to expect from my wife’s 12-year-old car. I know what to expect from my ole dog, Tom. He is about 12 years old.

But what changes can a 12-year-old boy be capable of bringing to their parents? Not sure? Then you need to watch this video.

Jesus always had a way of moving people from where they are to where they need to be. 

When Jesus was 12 years old, he traveled with his parents to Jerusalem for the Feast of Passover. This was almost a right of passage for any Jewish preteen boy. Here Jesus would learn about this feast with its sacrificial worship. 

But our 12-year-old lingered behind. There was so much more to be learned. We are told, “and as they were returning, after spending the full number of days, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. But His parents were unaware of it,”

Jesus had done nothing wrong, but his parents made a common mistake. They ASSUMED Jesus was in among the other families from Nazareth who were traveling back home. It was a matter of communication. Nothing really serious? Right? Let’s just see. When Joseph and Mary stopped after the 1st day of travel, they did not find Jesus among the other families. He was nowhere to be found. 

PANIC begins to set in. 

What if he is hurt? 

Sick? 

Where could he be? 

Has he been kidnapped? 

What are others doing to him? 

To Mary & Joseph, it is quite serious. Fear and imagination take over. Many parents, myself included, have felt this fear and intense anxiety.

Both parents spent the 2nd day rushing back to Jerusalem. 

On the 3rd, 4th, and 5th day, they were searching EVERYWHERE in Jerusalem. Some have estimated Jerusalem to have 160,000 people living there, but millions of others starting on their way home. Where do you look? 

There is no government agency, like the police, to report a missing child to. There are no Amber Alerts. There is no Facebook, Instagram, or other social media to post your missing child on. No television or radio to help. And the Jerusalem Herald newspaper was not in existence yet.

For 4 days they have been panic-stricken. By now he may have been a victim of child trafficking, and yes, it did exist back then. 

What led them to go to the temple we do not know. Maybe, after everything they could do was almost exhausted, they chose to go to the temple and pray for God’s help. We don’t know. 

But there he is! He is in the middle of teachers?? He is asking and answering questions with them.

Can’t you just see Mary rushing into the middle of this group, grabbing him, and squeezing the very life out of him? Soo happy. Sooo relieved. You can see that, can’t you? Maybe you were like that, too.

And then, Mom gets mad! She is tired! She is hungry! And that boy is just standing there like nothing is wrong. 

This is what she said. “Son, why have YOU treated US this way? Behold, Your father and I have been anxiously LOOKING for You.” 

In her mind, Jesus was to be blamed for all her worrying. He was the one at fault for all the SEARCHING she and Joseph had done from daylight to dark for 3 long days. They are ANGRY, TIRED, and wanted an explanation.

It is at this very point that Jesus, the 12-year-old boy, moves his parents from where they are, to where they need to be. He uses some selected loving and kind wording to move them gently toward being better parents, to the point they needed to be. 

He said, “Why is it that you were LOOKING  for Me? Did YOU not know that I HAD TO BE in My Father’s house?”

He was telling them there was no need for all the SEARCHING. Of all the people in all of Israel, Mary and Joseph knew EXACTLY who he was. Joseph was a thoughtful, kind, loving, ADOPTIVE father. And Mary had an Angel experience, and a long pregnancy without ever having intercourse. 

Both of them knew who the REAL FATHER was. Jesus literally said he HAD to be about his FATHER’S things. It is a 12-year-old that is REMINDING THEM of who he REALLY IS, and what he OUGHT to be about.

What is sad, is these 2 parents are like most parents. They didn’t get it. They did not understand him. It says, “But they did not understand the statement which He had made to them.”

Good parents, the ones trying hard every day, are going to make mistakes. Joseph and Mary made mistakes. This time, they made several bad assumptions. They THOUGHT he would be with the groups going home. They ASSUMED many bad things were happening to him. They JUMPED to the CONCLUSION that he was in danger or injured or even sold 

But which of these, fellow parents, have you NOT done yourself?

And they were parents lacking good communication with Jesus. Mary & Joseph might have voluntarily stayed in Jerusalem IF THEY had been listening to Jesus. These parents could have learned more about the direction their son was wanting to go if they had paid attention. 

And because there was an understanding gap, they spent 3 days looking in all the wrong places. If they had stopped and spent a little time thinking, they might have gone straight to the temple. A little time in thought could have saved them 3 days of torment. When one of my kids came up missing, I too, panic. I didn’t stop and think, either. 

And these 2 parents when back to Nazareth WITHOUT UNDERSTANDING what their son had told them. Possibly they were already feeling inadequate. Remember, they are trying to raise the most-unique person on earth AND trying to learn parenting skills at the same time. Every caring parent understands this seemly unfair situation. Every child is unique, and parenting is hard. 

So mom and dads, grandmas and grandpas, spend extra time with your children from age 10 on. These pre-teens change soooo fast. They need you to be in touch with them all the time. 

And as you feel them “slipping away”, spend even more time in prayer to God about them. Trust me. You need HIS help. 

Guide them. Nurture them. Show them a Jesus that understands how they feel and think.

Thank you for watching. If we can help in any way, use the contact page or the prayer request page to put us in motion. 

Until we can visit again, Goodbye for now.