Devotion 6 - Blessing to our Next generation
Parenting is difficult and complex especially in this competitive modern society where our moral and ethical values are constantly being challenged. With ungodly influences and societal pressures around us, saying parenting is “difficult” is an understatement. It takes great diligence to go against the flow of the anti-family headwind in society, and going with the flow is likely fatal!
History clearly affirms that family is the foundation of society and the building block of every nation. It is healthy family units that give stability to society. If we do not build better homes, we will have to build more prisons and half-way houses. If we do not teach our children, society will; and we, together with our children, will have to live with the outcome.
And as children of God, we are called to be stewards of all that He has put under our care and we believe that parenting is one of the higher, if not, the highest form of calling on stewardship.
Unfortunately, one of the reasons it is so difficult to bring up children right is because they tend to imitate their parents. Generally, what they behold, they become. The power of influence one has on the next generation is both encouraging and terrifying. And this does not happen to just our physical children, but to all our spiritual children as well.
Ps.112:1-3 – “Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in his commandments. His descendants will be mighty on earth; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches will be in his house, and his righteousness endures forever.
Psalm 128:1-4 – “Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways.
When you eat the labour of your hands, you shall be happy, and it shall be well with you.
Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house, your children like olive plants all around your table. Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord.
In these two Scriptures, we see how God’s blessing is poured in the family, to the next generation, if we walk in the fear of the Lord. A satisfying home that is greatly blessed by the Lord is promised to those who fear the Lord.
Our world can be a dark and tempting place, but God is sovereign. He is trustworthy as we walk with Him. Do not allow anxiety to guide the way we raise our children. For if it does, our children will sense that disquieting spirit, and either rebel against us or adopt the same mindset of fear.
Just as love casts our fear (1John.4:18), it seems fears also casts out love. Parenting out of fear can make us an overbearing, controlling parent. Raise our children to fear God, and He will guide them. Too many times, controlling parents react to their children out of fear and end up damaging their relationship with them.
The call to godly parenting is but a call and responsibility to prepare and nurture our children to walk diligently in the fear of the Lord. When our lives exemplify a life of obedience lived out in fear of the Lord, it lays a good foundation in our children’s lives, and their hearts will always respond well towards God’s love. It will help to set the pathway for their heart to pursue God with all their heart, soul and body.
We all need God as the source of our blessing because the best in life can only be found in Him. We can do well on our own: achieve success, make good money, have a family, live a long life, etc. but the BEST in our life can only come from the God when we learn to walk in fear of Him!