Thursday, October 9, 2008

Proverbs 6

These are great verses from Proverbs 6:20-23

20 My son, keep your father's commandment,
and forsake not your mother's teaching.
21 Bind them on your heart always;
tie them around your neck.
22 When you walk, they will lead you;
when you lie down, they will watch over you;
and when you awake, they will talk with you.
23 For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light,
and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life,

I read this earlier this morning and meditated on it for a while. What a great instruction from a father to a son! In Deuteronomy 6:4-8, God had told His people to love Him with all their being, to keep His commands on their heart, and to diligently teach them to their children--while they sit together, walk together, lay down for sleep, and wake up in the morning. You hear those same ideas here.

Fathers and mothers--this verse reminds us that the mother's role is vital too--are to instruct their children. All parents teach their kids, but are you teaching them God's commands and His ways--or are you putting your own expectations and burdens on them?

These verses remind us to teach our children's hearts and not to settle for outward conformity. This dad wants his son to internalize what he's taught, not just externally pretend that he agrees with his parents in order to avoid punishment. If their heart is never addressed, they might "behave" while they're in your house, but the second they're out of your house, their heart's true desires are going to run wild.

Lastly, these verses remind parents that they have a responsibility to provide "light" for their child. Children are born sinners who don't see the world rightly. They live in darkness. They don't see things the way that God does. They tend toward selfishness, pride, anger, envy, deceit, etc. A huge role of the parents, as ones whose eyes have been opened to the way things truly are, is to shine light into their children's darkness. In a loving way, you have to help them see their sin, their need for a Savior, and the way to live rightly. These things do NOT happen naturally for any child. They have to be intentionally taught over the course of time.

That's all for now...Keep loving your children, leading them, and teaching their hearts. Hopefully, your teaching--which should be God's teaching--will help them make godly decisions even when you're not around!

No comments: