Spring is here, so the calendar says, but for some of us it seems winter is hanging on for dear life. It seems that even Mother Nature is having trouble with her off-spring. Speaking of off-spring, I’d like to focus today on our children. Like asking will spring ever come, we also often ask ourselves, “Will they ever grow up?”
We often speak of the good old days when life was simple and children respected their elders. Today it seems no one has or shows respect for anyone or anything. The concept that it takes a village to raise a child has clearly been embraced. Perhaps it takes three to raise a child the preferable way; a mom, a dad and the Good Lord….though this is not always possible.
The Bible tells us in Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. (Notice it did not say HOW old.)
So many kids today are being raised by single parents. Dad is often not around and Mom has to work, so the child is left to the village. From daycare through high school many are left to their own devices and expected to raise themselves. Teachers are the ones doing most of the discipline, making their job even harder. Some of these children will turn out to be well-adjusted, confident adults, but many more will find themselves overwhelmed and unable to succeed. These are the ones we must be concerned about most.
Our kids are faced with so many situations today that we could have never imagined when we were young. Drugs and sex are dominate factors in the lives of way too many. Movies and TV shows are filled with these, along with violence and profanity. How are we to raise our children in such an atmosphere? When the world speaks louder than we do, who is the child most likely to listen to? When four-year-olds know where babies come from, how do we lead them in the right direction? Parenting is serious and a scary responsibility.
So many posts on Facebook are made by young people looking for the right partner, that best friend forever, being depressed, feeling nobody cares. My heart aches for these youngsters whose thoughts are so occupied with finding love and being accepted. Bullying has become a major problem in our schools and so many just hate being there, yet we send them back day after day to face the same demons and the same fears. Life was not meant to be lived in constant dread and fear of what might happen. How are we ever going to change things for these young people?
The first thing we need to do is equip them with the knowledge that they are NOT alone and that somebody does care. As parents it is our responsibility to see that our children are safe. We must make the schools aware of what is going on and make sure steps are taken to change the situation when at all possible. Bullying must be met with severe consequences and zero tolerance. Proverbs 22: 15 says: Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.
This “rod of correction” does not have to be a paddle, though that used to be the solution to most problems in school and at home. Today these young people have no fear of authority figures or principals (or princples). Being sent to the office is everyday life for them and no big deal. Perhaps if they were forced to attend a discipline class or kept separated from the other children for a while. There are options and we must find them. Parents should maybe home school the problem children…. Not the ones being bullied, but the ones doing it are the ones who need to be dealt with.
Kids of today are the adults of tomorrow. If the adults of today are to someday turn responsibility over to the youngsters, we had better make sure we are raising them to be responsible, God-fearing people with their heads on straight. The help we need in doing this is no more than a prayer away. We must literally get about our Father’s business and do as His word says: Train up a child in the way he should go.
The church is the best place to start in raising our kids the right way. The basic Bible verses taught in Sunday School to the youngest children are basics we all need to memorize and live by. 1 John 4: 7 is the best place to start…Love one another. Romans 12: 10 Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love.
Be kind. How hard is that…. to simply be kind to one another? Are we so simple-minded and selfish that we cannot take time to simply be kind to those around us? Perhaps our attitude has influenced our children. We rant and rave if our fast food isn’t fast enough, complain if our neighbors are too loud, call the cops if someone disturbs us, use language we tell our kids is not appropriate…. First we must get ourselves right with how to act before we can teach our kids the proper way to behave.
As I said before our help is only a prayer away. If we confess our shortcomings and ask His forgivness and help, God is always quick to forgive and lead us in the right way. Romans 12: 2…be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.
It’s springtime, a time for new growth, planting seed and budding out. Let’s plant the seeds of faith today in the hearts of our children and the parents who so badly need to see a change from the cold and bitterness. May the grace of our Lord be with us all as we reach out to our kids….They will grow up, but how they grow is our responsibility.
Seeds of Faith
