“I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who
wills to do good. 22 For I delight in the law of God according to the inward
man. 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my
mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 I
thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” – Romans 7:21-25
For the first 2 years in Texas, we lived in a travel trailer in a
church parking lot – on a major highway – on the approach/departure end of an
airport. The highway is under
construction and has been for years. For
local residents, it seems like the work has been going on since they can remember,
with no end in sight. Not too different from the process of sanctification that
happens in a Christian’s life. That
change – that construction – just doesn’t seem to happen fast enough in other
people – not in me – other people.
Don’t you wish you had the power to change someone – quickly. I mean – change their behavior – cause them
to do what you want them to do? I have thought that many times for our children
and their children. If I could only get
them to see the truth of what I say and the danger and consequences of the
choices they are making. Unfortunately, very
often, their understanding only comes after they are suffering the consequences
of their poor choices. If only I had the power to change them and get them to
see so they could avoid the heartache that is sure to come. Of course, as a
parent, your heart hurts for them. And sometimes, you may even wonder – “What
did I do wrong?” – “I feel like a bad parent because I could not get them to
change course.”
Martie and I were watching a church service last Sunday – holed up in our COVID cave – and the preacher said “No one has to be taught how to sin, we are all born with that nature.” It was then that I was reminded that what I wanted to see in my children and their children was a change in their nature and then a change in their heart and then a change in their life choices.
(2
Corinthians 5:17) says if we are in Christ – born again – the old nature will
decrease and the new nature will increase.
The most important thing you can do for your child is lead them to Jesus
– but the choice to yield their hearts to God is theirs, not yours. Oh – and to
clarify – our lives are no different than theirs. My mom felt the very same way about me and
the other 6 children in our family. Our
three children have all professed faith in Jesus. And we all still make poor choices – all of
us. We have a new life that is under construction.
So, today, I don’t want to change my kids or their kids – I want
them to fully yield their hearts to the Lord and let Him do the supernatural
work of sanctification. You may have
heard this before – my mom told me that her mom told her “When children are
young, they step on your toes, and when they are older, they step on your
heart.” It is the nature of things. “Nothing new under the sun ..” (King
Solomon).
The take away here – love your kids – you don’t have to like what
they do. Pray for your kids. Be an example for your kids of what a Christian is
supposed to look like – be like – behave like – love like. Dr. James Dobson says values are “caught” not
“taught”. What do you value? God’s truth
or the culture’s truth? If they make
poor choices – you don’t have to pretend they were good choices – you just keep
loving the one who made them. (that phrase is what is called a double
entendre).
BTW – this applies to other people you know – not just your kids!
Maybe your spouse 😊
Think about it – Pray about it – Believe it –
Walk in it. Let your light shine and give God the glory.
By Faith Alone By His Grace Alone And For His
Glory Alone
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