Does that bring God Glory?

Today I might have heard some of the best parenting advice I've heard in a long time! During a funeral of all things ... the Lord answered a question I've been struggling with lately ... how do I answer my son who is about to go to college when he asks "permission" ... I add the quotation marks because we've moved to the place where he asks but it's likely he's going to do what he wants. Quite honestly, that's making me crazy ... HOWEVER, saying to him I don't care was both a lie and hurt his feelings(that's got enough in it for a whole other blog) ... so I have been asking the Lord for an honorable response.

The advice consisted of this ... when the request is made (and that is the honorable thing to do) ... the response is no longer yes or no, but rather ... it points the person asking in the right direction ... you see there's a pretty good measure for things we do ... our purpose in this life is to bring God Glory ... so it's perfectly reasonable to ask your child(student, friends, spouse) this question ... "Will that bring God glory?" And then the ball is in their court ... I'm no longer responsible for several things ... I am no longer putting my growing up child in the position of being disobedient ... I am no longer trying to read motives ... I've moved responsibility from me to him ... but ultimately, I've done just what I've hoped to do since he was 6 weeks old ... I've put him in the position of answering to the Lord ... it was my whole purpose in teaching first time obedience, in singing Bible songs, listening to thousands of hours of adventures in Oddessy, VeggieTales, traveling to youth group youth choir and summer camp ... it's what I've spent hours praying about ... I wanted him to learn to follow the Lord ... not me. I'm broken, at best. I want so much more for this sweet young man that has been entrusted to me than I can give him!!! Will he decide differently than I would choose? Yes. He. Will. Will he miss the mark ... um ... yeah. So will I! But it lets him see my heart, hear my expectation and bridge this season of our life together with His Grace!
So today, I feel more equipped. And it's such a simple yet profound plan ...