The Days of Youth

"The season of youth comes only once and should be celebrated to its fullest. Laugh! Enjoy that time of life! Those years are filled with new experiences and opportunities to explore like no other. Learning is at its zenith. The wings of independence get spread and take their first flight. Chances at love are taken that may lead to a partner in marriage and family."

There was once an old wise king who wrote and collected various sayings that reflected his observations of life, from youth to old age. In pondering his younger days, he wrote poetically to the those in his kingdom that were starting out in life, “Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment. Remove vexation from your heart, and put away pain from your body, for youth and the dawn of life are vanity. Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, ‘I have no pleasure in them’; before the sun and the light and the moon and the stars are darkened. . .” (Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:2)

The king was Solomon, the wealthiest, wisest, and most sought-after man of his day. Other rulers from throughout the world came to ask questions and learn from him. What was his message to the youth of his kingdom?

Rejoice in your youth. Solomon recognized the season of youth comes only once and should be celebrated to its fullest. Laugh! Enjoy that time of life! Those years are filled with new experiences and opportunities to explore like no other. Learning is at its zenith. The wings of independence get spread and take their first flight. Chances at love are taken that may lead to a partner in marriage and family.

Remove grief from your heart. While enjoying youth to its fullest, sometimes there are days of darkness. There may come tragedy or pain that can overshadow this season. The death of a parent or friend, dad and mom divorce, severe sickness or disease, abuse or depression can all darken this time of life. One’s moral choices can have a great impact on these years as well. Problems with drugs or alcohol. Sexual encounters. Terminating a pregnancy. Bad financial decisions. Whatever it is, the days of darkness can bring grief to the years of one’s youth.

Remember your Creator. It is easy to forget God in the younger years. The sense of adventure, a desire to question, being at the peak of energy and strength, and living for the moment, can all lead there. But God has a way of helping us to remember. Solomon points out three ways God does this. One, Solomon shares that in the time of youth, when one reaches their peak of life in so many ways, they slowly start to decline as the body ages. Aging is God’s way of humbling us. Second, the wise king reveals how death is certain for us all. Some, as they age, will live long before stepping through death’s door. For others, their youth may be cut short, before entering through that same door. Third, Solomon states that following death everyone will give an account before God for their life, a day of reckoning, where all those moral choices in our youth, will have to be answered for.

Knowing all this, how shall we live from the sunrise to the sunset of life? Hear Solomon, “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” (Eccl. 12:13) From the beginning of life, to the end, if we live according to God’s ways there will be no regret. Peace will abound in our hearts and it will be well with our eternal soul. God sent His only Son to die and rise again so that our disobedience might be forgiven. No one can redo the past. All we have is today. If we turn from our ways, then God promises that all things will be made new. Believe this truth. Tomorrow can be different!

A prayer for you – “Creator God, help the young to fully enjoy their youth. Pull back their days of darkness. Help them to remember and live their life, from beginning to end, all for you. In Jesus name. Amen."

Restoring The Value and Priority of Motherhood

"If a woman is blessed to become a mother, God call’s her to make that her chief mission in life, raising those precious little children. Unfortunately, we live in a day where the role of motherhood is diminished and the women who embrace it, face great challenges." 

Hannah deeply loved her husband, but was childless. This weighed so terribly upon her, that she could not eat and was visibly distraught. So much so her husband said, “Am I not more to you than ten sons?” (1 Samuel 1:8). Eventually she went to her place of worship where “she was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. (1 Sam. 1:10) In her desperate prayer for a baby boy she cried out to God and made a promise to Him, if He would provide a child saying, “I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life.” (1 Sam. 1:11). God did grant her request and nine months later little Samuel was born, who grew up to become a great leader in the history of Israel.  (Photo from Unsplash)

I love this story because it communicates the natural, maternal instinct of a woman to have a child, which she was amazingly created by God to do. This is a normal God-given desire for a woman, and when she is blessed to have children, there is tremendous joy and fulfillment. Conversely, when a woman is unable to get pregnant or when her baby dies in the womb or after birth, there is deep sorrow.

It is written, “. . . children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man (or woman) who fills his quiver with them! (Psalm 127:3-5) Motherhood is a wonderful blessing and gift from God. Whether it is one child or 12. Whether biological, step, adoptive or foster care children. Whether in good health or with a disability. No matter the ups and downs, bliss or heartache, children are a blessing.

Like Hannah, if a woman is blessed to become a mother, God call’s her to make that her chief mission in life, raising those precious little children. Unfortunately, we live in a day where the role of motherhood is diminished and the women who embrace it, face great challenges. The world we live in does not encourage the pursuit or priority of marriage and family. Instead, it encourages selfish individualism, plunging into entertainment and recreation, a quest for personal pleasure and putting career above raising a family. Today married couples are delaying the start of their family unlike any time in the past, and are having fewer children than ever before. When asking a child what they want to be, we might hear things like being a professional athlete, a doctor, or amassing followers on social media. Where is the discussion about aspiring to get married and become a father or mother and have children?

God has created us and laid out how we are to live, but we have fallen short, sinned against Him and hurt ourselves. To some degree maybe you feel like you have failed as a mom or find it difficult to embrace the idea of motherhood. Maybe you had a child outside of marriage, entered into a bad relationship that ended in divorce, put your interests above your kids or been terribly harsh with them. Whatever it is, stop and consider God’s plan for you.

If you feel have fallen short, come to Him with a humble spirit and call out for forgiveness. He will hear and forgive. When God sent His only Son to die on a cross and rise again from the dead, He showed us that restoration is possible. Through turning from our sin and placing our faith in Christ, all things can be made new, which includes you. 

A prayer for you – “Father in heaven I pray you will hear the cry of the barren woman to have a child. Hear the cry of the mom who has fallen short of your standards and give her new life in Christ. Hear the questions of the young woman who doubts if motherhood is for her. Show her how beautifully she is made and the purpose for which she was created. In Jesus name. Amen."

God's Call to Raise Obedient Children, Pt. 2

"The hard work of raising obedient children is a long, winding and uphill road. Because it often seems nearly impossible, it can bring parents to feel like giving up and letting the kids have their way. However, God provides a plan to help parents succeed in this critical task of great consequence." 

Isaac and Rebecca were an elderly couple with two sons. As Isaac was nearing death, he wanted to impart a spiritual blessing to his eldest son, Esau. Rebecca hearing of this, desperately wanted Jacob, her youngest son, to receive the blessing instead. She conspired with Jacob to deceive her husband and steal the blessing from her eldest son. The Bible shares about this ancient story, “So [Jacob] went into his father and said, ‘My father.’ And [Isaac] said, ‘Here I am. Who are you, my son?’ Jacob said to his father, ‘I am Esau your first-born.’” (Genesis 27:18-19) As the story unfolds, Jacob told lie after lie to his father, with ample opportunities to realize the wrong he was doing and stop. He was a grown man, who was responsible for his actions, but also influenced to do wrong by his mother. Jacob was clearly disobedient and dishonoring to his father, but later when Isaac learned about his son’s disobedience, he did nothing. The way Jacob was permitted to treat his father, is the way he lived many years of his life, until he eventually humbled himself before God and was changed.

The Bible says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” (Ephesians 6:1) The story illustrates the need for this command from God. For when it is not followed, it always is a set up for disaster in the home and for the future of the child.

The Creator knows the heart of people and the society in which they live. Each person is born in sin, with an instinctive propensity to rebel against God and other forms of authority, beginning with their own parents. As children develop, this becomes more and more evident. Complicating this, each child is also raised with parents who are the same way, and is part of a larger society that is also the same. The Bible predicts that in the time before Jesus returns people throughout the world will be “proud, arrogant, abusive [and] disobedient to their parents . . .” (1 Timothy 3:2).

God knows the task of raising obedient children is a long, winding and uphill road. Because it often seems nearly impossible, it can bring parents to feel like giving up and letting the kids have their way. Therefore, God gives a plan to help parents succeed with practical guidance saying, “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” (Eph. 6:4) 

1. Dads should lead in the spiritual instruction of the children. In cases where a dad refuses, is absent or has died, this is the mother’s role. God is clear on this, parents are in charge of the home, not the children. 

2. Do not stir up your kids to anger. When parents ignore, threaten, yell, curse or hit their kids to get them to obey it only serves a ball of fire to them, which will be hit back with great force in the moment or in the future. 

3. Raise your children on God’s Word. The Bible is a parent’s curriculum for spiritual instruction. Help your children to read it, memorize it, study it, pray it, learn it and ultimately; do what it says. If you feel inadequate, admit it and walk together with your children on this. The Bible has an answer for every problem your child will face, continually point them to it. 

4. A divine promise to children who persevere to the end. God states, “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” (Eph. 6:3) This ancient Hebrew expression communicates the promise of God’s continual presence, provision and power to children who walk faithfully with the Lord God through trusting in His glorious Son.

A prayer for you – “Lord God, help parents to know whatever obstacle they face in teaching their children to obey, you can overcome. Persuade them to teach their children the Bible day-by-day, and fill parents with all manner of love and humility for this work. May families walk according to your conditions to have your promise poured out on them in great measure. In Jesus name. Amen."