Sometimes we actually think we are smart enough to take care of ourselves. Really?!? If you are alive at the end of this day it will be because God has determined that you should still be breathing. Sound simplistic? This was the truth that Paul spoke in Athens to the intellectual giants of his day. This is not simplistic, but the most important reality that can be known. All men are totally dependent upon the mercy and plan of God, whether they acknowledge this truth or not. Humbly live this truth out before your children. Talk to God, acknowledge God, be thankful to God. Let them see your dependence upon God. If you don’t, they will believe you think too […]
Yearly Archives: 2014
347 posts
Human anger must not characterize your discipline. If it does, you have made discipline about satisfying your requirements. As a parent you are granted authority to enforce God’s commands, not your own preferences. Your authority is derived, not earned. Human anger and biblical discipline do not mix. Man’s anger will not bring about the righteous life that God desires. (James 1:20) The key phrase is the righteous life that God desires. God did not give you your children so that you could teach them to follow your desires and wishes. When you make parenting about your desires, then, in your mind, God exits to serve you, to support your agenda and standards. When this role reversal occurs, you attempt to […]
Sometimes at night I find myself awake, wide awake, hopelessly awake. In these moments I am confronted with piercing clarity about past sins. I remember the stupidity of thinking I had a good reason to trust my flesh and ignore my God. I remember the allure of self-justification, of the fog of self-pity. Why could I not have had this awareness of the deceitful awfulness of sin forty years ago, twenty years ago, twenty hours ago? In these moments I am also aware that I am the same pathetic creature of my past. The opening plea of Psalm 130 perfectly describes the state of my heart with eyes wide open in the bleakness of night. From the depths of despair, […]
Three times each year the Israelites would travel to Jerusalem for a special time of festival and worship. For those who lived close to Jerusalem this would be an afternoon hike in the mountains. But for many this was a journey that may have lasted several days. There were no interstates, motels, restaurants, or rest stops. As the mountains surrounding Jerusalem loomed larger with each step, so did the dangers that were hidden from view. There were wild animals, robbers and rough terrain. This journey was not a safe one. As the travelers looked up at the formidable landscape around them, they asked where will our help come from, who will protect us. Psalm 121 powerfully answers this question. You […]
Your flesh tempts you to think love is something that is designed to make you happy, to make you feel good. Yes, it is wonderful when others love us. But you must not live live for those moments. Biblically, love is dying to what you want and living for what brings honor to God. In love, Jesus did not keep his life, but gave it up for you. Paul tells us three things that are not love. Love does not envy. Love does not boast. Love is not proud. I Corinthians 13:4 Envy has a particularly nasty twist with regard to parenting. Envy causes you to crave things that you think will make you happy. You listen to the lustful […]
Patience is often referred to as something that can be lost – as in “you are really causing me to lose my patience.” But how would it sound if you were to say “you are really causing me to lose my love for you?” If love is patient, then “losing” patience can be equated to losing love. Said this way the idea of losing patience is not a pretty one. A working definition of patience is living in the expectation of God’s care. Patience is part of the Spirit’s fruit. Patience is the opposite of frustration. Patience is a sure belief that God will not abandon you. No matter what the circumstance God’s love and care for you is never […]
It is easy to show kindness when your children are respectful and obey quickly with a smile. It is easy to show kindness when they clean the living room without being told. But when they are disrespectful and make a mess instead, being kind seldom enters our minds. But think about this. Suppose God chose to follow our example when he disciplines us for our sinful behavior? I don’t know about you, but that is a thought that terrifies me. Being kind does not mean you don’t discipline or correct. It does not mean you roll over and give your kids control of the house. It does not mean lowering standards. Being kind means that you show God to your […]
For a few days each fall, God’s canvas is covered with warm shades of stunning beauty. Then one morning the brilliant leaves are no more. The forests are bleak once again. Don’t live for what will not last. Any relationship, any endeavor, any hope, any dream that does not find its joy in Christ will fall to the ground and be trampled upon. Only those things which are connected to the purpose and plan of God will endure. Don’t live for what is dying. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. (John 2:17)
Focus your attention on greatness! Praising God serves both to honor him and to focus our attention on his greatness. As sinful people, we tend to focus on ourselves and our problems, and lose a biblical perspective. But as God says in Isaiah, “…my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways.” Praising God realigns our perspective and helps to conform our thoughts to his thoughts. Joy differs from praise but is closely related to it. As Jay Adams says,”Joy is a deep-seated attitude of confidence that grows out of dependence on God.”… Thus praise is an action, joy is an attitude. Contemplation of God’s sovereign working in history and in our lives produces in us a […]
James tells the story of two kinds of wisdom. In Chapter 3:13-18, he talks about wisdom from above and contrasts it with “wisdom” that is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. Which of these two forms of wisdom characterize your parenting? How can you tell the difference? The answer is shocking and disarming. If the “wisdom” that you deploy is different that what is described in verse 17 then it is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. There is no middle ground. Honestly look at what verse 17 says is wisdom from above. Cry out to God for the courage and faith to show your children this kind of wisdom. Remember, anything else is described by the Holy Spirit as earthly, unspiritual, demonic. But the wisdom […]