"The fact that Jesus was “lost” has a very positive implication – could it be that He was such a great kid that His “trust leash” was a long one with mom and dad? To be true to the culture of the time, women and children would often travel ahead of the men on the journey home meeting up in the evening. It would have been natural for one parent to think Jesus was with the others children or with other family members. No matter what the situation, it was obvious that Jesus had their trust – a great goal for every tween to shoot for with their parents and those in authority over them by the time they hit the big 13!
From another perspective, could it be that mom and dad lost Jesus because they thought He was “normal” or “typical”? Why is it that it took them 3 days to finally locate Him? Maybe they went to the mall first or possibly the video arcade. After all, the last place to look for a tween would be a temple wouldn’t it? I continue to be intrigued by the obvious sigh of relief that comes from parents when they see their tweens totally engaged in worship or prayer in the J12 Theatre. Maybe they were thinking, “This isn’t supposed to happen, my kid lives in America!” What we believe our kids will experience in life has a strong prophetic element to it – what we suppose is what they will often become. My wife and I recently had our first child – Gabrielle! We believe she will know God early. I declare over her “Honey, you’ll never return to the Lord because you’re never going to leave Him.” This is not about “straight jacket” religion or forced faith. Nor is it a confession I make over her that erases her capacity to exercise her “free will”. We just believe that our positive paradigm and prophetic confessions over her will do her good in the decisions she will make in life. I’m expecting my daughter to be found in the House of the Lord! First, because we will be taking her there faithfully, and secondly, because after she grows up and understands where she is, she won’t want to leave! That is our prophetic pre-supposition!"
- Excerpt from
J12 Starter Book
Gregg Johnson