Training Up My Children God's Way

God had my best interest in mind when He gave me my children. He says that children are a blessing, and they are! I love God so much! What a privilege I have been given to receive so many blessings. Of course, because He loves my precious children and He cares for their mother and father, I follow every instruction He gave me regarding how to parent them. Above all, I am to LOVE them as it is written in Titus 2:4. Loving my children requires a lot of deliberate care and this takes a lot of effort. It is so important that I do this and it is written that Mothers who choose to ignore this will cause God's word to be blasphemed (v 5). Naturally, I understand the seriousness that it is my responsibility to properly "train them up." Schools, church, government, and friends and family did not bring my children into the world. I did. So, I choose to follow God's way and raise them God's way. In Genesis 18:19, God approved of Abraham, because he commanded his children to keep the way of the Lord. In contrast, in 1 Samuel 3:12-14 , when Eli's sons became corrupt, God rebuked Eli; not the schools, the church, the government, or his family and friends. 

One of my favorite verses, Philippians 4:13, gives me the right amount of encouragement to keep my eyes focused on parenting my children with wisdom and Godliness: "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me!" If my child was born with a serious mental or physical handicap, I would do all I could to properly care for them. I would learn all I could about their handicap and make sure they were given all the proper tools and devotion to live a wonderful life! Grace be to God, my own children were born healthy, but though their bodies are well, their very souls are in a position to become corrupt and lost. Satan is always seeking how to devour and destroy my children. So, with diligence, I learn all I can about how to raise my children in this fallen world. He wants me to protect their souls and to raise them to know, love, and obey Him. My children were not given to me do with them as I please. They are not my property. They are God's children given into my care, so I will raise them to be what He wants them to be.

Proverbs 22:6 is a mighty statement of truth: "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."

This verse gives me confidence that, if I follow God's word, I can raise children to serve God and be saved! The way I parent my children will determine their eternal destiny. I love them and I also discipline them with godliness. It is my responsibility to teach them God's way and proper Godly discipline is the only way to do this! My children will not always have me around to guide their decisions. I must instill in them the understanding and habit of doing right, so they will serve God when they make their own decisions. I want my children to put God first in their lives. Ephesians 6:4 instructs me to bring my children up in the training and admonition of the Lord. Listen to this: " Do not withhold correction from a child. You shall beat him with a rod and deliver his soul from hell." (Proverbs 23:13-14) So, yes, I most certainly spank my children. No, I do not beat them or abuse them. I administer proper, loving spankings to keep them out of hell! 

In lieu with discipline, I give my children my time and attention, tempered with wisdom. Psalms 34:11  says, "Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord." To accomplish this, I give my children many things money cannot buy: time, love, instruction in God's word, guidance in dealing with life's problems, an example of godliness, and training in moral purity. My husband doesn't work long hours so my children can have all we can afford to buy them. We choose to not over-provide for them. We teach them that everything they are given is to be received with humility and gratefulness. I never want my children to have a "the world owes me" mentality. In Luke 12:15, Jesus said, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses." He then told of a man who obtained great wealth but neglected God (16-21). When the man died, what good did his wealth do him? In Matthew 16:26, it says, "What is a man profited if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?" Likewise, what profit is to my children if I give them all the world has to offer, but they are eternally lost? Deuteronomy 18:10 says, "There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire..." Most of us would not think of sacrificing a child to worship an idol. But covetousness is idolatry (Col. 3:5). Too many parents over-emphasize material pursuits: possessions, entertainment, education, popularity, beauty, sports, etc. Unknowingly, such parents are sacrificing their children to the idols of covetousness and worldliness.