Train up a child

            Being a parent is one of the most incredible aspects of the human experience. Sadly, many fail to see its importance, assuming that their children will be ok with a minimal investment of parenting. In Proverbs 22:6, we are told that we are to train our children in the way they should go and when they are old they will not depart from it.  First of all, let me affirm that some who are great parents have wayward children who make bad choices. The prophet Samuel is one Biblical example. So my point is not to make parents of wayward children feel condemned. My purpose is to remind and encourage those of us who are rearing children to be vigilant and to seek effectiveness in our methods.

            Children are a sacred trust from God. In Malachi 2:15, we find that God’s plan is to perpetuate the knowledge of Him from parents to children to spread the knowledge of God from generation to generation. God’s desire is that we as parents would grow in our knowledge of Him and spread that to our children and grandchildren. The question becomes, “How do I do that?”

            The place to start is by role modeling. I don’t mean simply attending church and speaking Christian speak. I mean growing as a disciple of Christ daily. This is done by conforming our actions, words, attitudes, habits, deeds, and interpersonal relationships to the commands of Christ more and more each day. Galatians 5 and Colossians 3 give us a great list of qualities to turn away from and a list to replace them with. This is a process that is accomplished with a cooperation of our will/choices and the work of the Holy Spirit through prayer. Our homes should be filled with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and respect to name a few, not because we want to keep the church’s rules, but because we have been adopted as children of God and we want to blend into the nature and culture of our adoptive Father!

            Another important aspect is to tell your children the stories about your experience with God your Father. Do they know the details of your conversion experience? Do they know about the change that God has brought about in you? Do they know about the great answers to prayer in your life? Do they know about your discipleship growth struggles and triumphs? Have you shared your experience with God with them? They need to know that God is real and is making a real difference in your life.

            When our children misbehave, they all do it’s human nature, it is critical to connect their sinful behavior to Biblical principles. It doesn’t really help them to teach them to treat others well because it is the nice thing to do or because that’s what we expect. We should take them to the Golden Rule and teach them that Jesus expects us to treat others the way we want to be treated. Training is teaching. The question is, what is the foundation of our instruction? Anything other than God’s Word will eventually leave our children adrift to figure out how to live on their own rather than do it Mom’s way or Dad’s way. Teaching them to embrace God’s Word as the basis for all conduct in life will carry them into a real awareness of God’s presence in their lives. I believe this will equip our children to carry the knowledge of Jesus Christ as the full life giver to their generation and pass it on to the next generation.

Of course, they will make mistakes,that’s how we grow and learn. The key is that they will have a solid seed of eternity planted deep in them that will bear fruit for a lifetime.