Thursday #4 Devotion

Psalm 127:1--Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain
that build it; except the Lord keep the city, the watchmen waketh
but in vain.

I have witnessed a lot of families who have simply taught their children right
from wrong based upon a moral sense of goodness and justice. I have seen people
base their child training upon the advice of a talk show host. I have seen people
delve into alternate religions or doctrinal concoctions in raising their children.
However, I have never seen successes or a retention rate as high as I do
with Biblical principles.

When we trust God to teach us how to train our children, He becomes the
carpenter of their lives. He has the freedom to watch over them when they
have been entrusted into His care. This verse tells us that is it vanity, or
emptiness, for us to even try to build our children without the hand of God.
He wants to do this for us. He desires to show us how to aim our children like
arrows toward their fullest potentials and successful futures. Why would we want
to do this without Him? If we sincerely love Him, if we are genuinely devoted to
fellowship with Him, it is the logical conclusion that our parenting experiences
should be guided by Him. All else is vanity.

Even though the other methods or variations may appear to work and may even
produce some positive results, ultimately there will be something missing. We may
not know the fullness of it until it is too late. I don't want to take that chance. I don't
want to be the reason why my children miss out on doing something real and
purposeful in this earth. So, I dedicate the building of my children and the
keeping of them to my Heavenly Father. I know that He won't leave me,
forsake me, misguide me, or betray me.

So, how does one train their children under the tutelage of God's mighty Hand?
First, you must dedicate concentrated fellowship time with God so that He may
walk you through His Word and you may tune your ears to His voice. Secondly, you
must study, meditate upon, pray, learn, and believe the Bible verses God dedicated
to parenting. Find verses about raising children, loving children, being a parent, or
stories about Godly families. Thirdly, you must demonstrate the principles discovered
in the journey of your home. Lastly, you must teach Biblical principles to your
children. That is not simply reading Bible stories to them. It is the act of getting the Bible
into them.

The other ways may be easier, but their effect is not eternal. It takes time, great
self-control, and overwhelming patience to do it God's way. You must be humble enough
to be obedient. If you mess up, then you have to be humble enough to let your children
watch the pathway of repentance. Allow God to build our life and our journey of child
training. Let Him be the Architect of our adventure. The end product will be the mansion of His
magnificence.

Confession: I will honor God by allowing Him to build my children. I know it
will not be in vain. I trust in God's ability to use me in my children's lives to
build them up according to His plan.