Tuesday, August 8, 2017

Psalm 78:1-8, 17-29 We Will Not Hide Them From Our Children



Observation: This psalm's purpose is to teach the history of Israel to the next generation. The singer promises to utter "things we have heard and known, things our ancestors have told us. We will not hide them from their children..."

Application: It still blows me away that I'm a father of three. That God has given me the blessing--and the profound responsibility--of guiding these little people through the world, is almost beyond my comprehension. Laura and I, typical of our generation, do stress often about whether we're doing the right thing by them: what to feed them and when, how much (if any) screen time is too much, who are good role models to introduce them to, what issues so they need to hear about from us and when, the list goes on and on. It's never been easy, but in this age of constant information flow, both for kids and parents, it's getting tougher.
But one thing about which I don't lose even a minute of sleep is teaching my children the story of our faith, early and often. I do not buy the argument that parents should hold off talking to their kids about faith until they're old enough to decide for themselves. You don't do that with anything else that's important to you. Not with eating their veggies, not with putting on their seatbelt, not with learning addition, subtraction or tying their shoes. To me, waiting to share my faith with my kids is tantamount to saying it isn't important to me. And it is. So I introduce them to the God I have come to know and love: a God who provides for us when we're weary, who guides us when we're lost, who delivers us when we think we're beyond help. I teach them in a way I think they can understand. I don't give them everything all at once. But I give them all I have, and I lead them to the One who has infinitely more.

Prayer: God, I thank you for the gift and mission of introducing my kids to you. Help me learn from you all my life, and ask forgiveness when I fall short, to better model discipleship for them. Amen. 

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