Today’s Scrip-Bit 21 June 2015 Ecclesiastes 12:1‏‏

21 Jun 2015 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Ecclesiastes 12:1.    Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not (before the evil days come), nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them.

HAPPY  FATHER’S   DAY!
 
Oh Friends, welcome to a most auspicious day in the annals of mankind! (smile)

And why do I say that? First of all, we’re alive and doing relatively well. Then it’s also Sunday; the day we gather together to sing and praise and worship and glorify our wonderful God and Creator. Thirdly, it’s the first day of summer in the northern climes… And triumphant shouts of ‘Glory Hallelujah!’ reach up to heaven for that blessing.

Yes my people, I know that the winter and spring seasons have been long, spiritually and emotionally tiring and just flat out disgusting and depressing. Now we expect to have at least have a couple months of constant sunshine and warm weather. Although we might soon start complaining that it’s too hot. (smile) But that’s just the nature of the beast.

And last but certainly not least, today is Father’s Day. Wow! If all of that doesn’t make this an auspicious occasion, well then I don’t know what does.

And I’d like to wish ALL the Fathers around the world a Happy Father’s Day! It doesn’t matter whether you’re a good, bad or indifferent Father, today is your day, so please enjoy it.

Now I don’t intend to preach a sermon about being a good father, (smile) but just highlight scriptures that point the way. Before we get to that though, just let me say that good fathers are definitely worth their weight in gold; as economic providers, as well as emotional and spiritual guides.

The father is supposed to be the head of the household, the one with the God-given authority to lead and guide the family with a fine balance of LOVE and discipline as we saw in the scholars explanation yesterday.

Sadly, that is not an easy task, and not all men are capable of doing it, or are even willing to try. And that’s when and where the main unit of society, the family, begins to deteriorate. And once that bed-rock foundation goes, then the society itself will eventually crumble. Unfortunately we’re seeing a lot of that, in fact way too much of that deterioration nowadays. 

Men aren’t standing up to their responsibilities as they should, thus leaving the mothers with too much to do. And though mothers are great, can withstand plenty pressure, they are only human and can only do so much with so little. So all I’m asking us men to do is to please accept our responsibilities as fathers, to live up to the expectations that the name implies.

Children weren’t brought into the world by mothers alone, and if, as many of us are, such big, prideful, egotistical men when we impregnate the ladies, then we ought to be just as big and proud and conscientious to help raise the children that we bring into this evil and godless world. End of sermon. (smile)

Now let’s turn to our Bit. ‘Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not (before the evil days come), nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them.’ And we couldn’t find a more appropriate one for this Father’s Day message, because it’s all about teaching our children about the things of God.  

Remember yesterday we highlighted this scripture from Proverbs. ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and (even) when he is old, he will not depart from it.’ (Prov.22:6) Well that’s what being a father is all about.

And earlier on in Proverbs, re a Father’s wisdom, Cousin Sol declares: ‘Hear ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding. For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law…. Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many. I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths.

When thou goest thy steps shall not be straitened (hindered), and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble. Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life. Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it (do not travel on it) turn from it and pass away.

For they sleep not, except (unless) they have done mischief (evil); and their sleep is taken away (they are robbed of sleep), unless they cause some to fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. But the path of the just is as the shining (bright) light, that shineth more and more (ever brighter) unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.’ (Prov.4:1-2, 10-19)

Ah mih people, those are some of the things a father ought to be teaching his children; showing them the two ways of living this life, the wise and godly one, and the wicked, ungodly fleshly manner.

Now let’s end with these famous words of advice from Bruh Paul to the Ephesians. ‘Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and thy mother; which is the first commandment with promise; That it may be well with thee, and that thou mayest live long on the earth. And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture (training) and admonition of the Lord.’ (Eph.6:1-4)  

Yes Friends, it’s a two way street, but it all begins first with the Father, who must teach the children the right and godly way, which includes spiritual education as well as responsibilities and duties. Sad to say, we have not done a good enough job of that with this current generation, that’s why they are so ungodly and irresponsible.

Fathers, and mothers where necessary, please let’s try and improve that nuh, for without those strong foundational building blocks our children will be lost forever. Much LOVE!

…the home is the training ground of the young…and what they learn there…they will practice outside… 

P.S. Friends, will somebody please slap me upside the head for being too lazy to type the headings anew every day, and then making matters worse by forgetting to change the date on some of them. I did it again yesterday.

Chuh! I know many of you don’t notice it, but when I do, it just drives me crazy, because it means I am not doing as excellent a job as I should on the Lord’s business. Anyhow, I know the Lord and you my readers will forgive me, let’s just hope that I can forgive myself. (smile) Much LOVE!

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 20 June 2015 Ecclesiastes 12:1‏

20 Jun 2015 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Ecclesiastes 12:1.   Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not (before the evil days come), nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them.

 

Warm and sincere greetings my beautiful Friends, on this Saturday morning in June, the last day of spring! Yes, tomorrow is listed as the first day of summer, so let’s hope it does come up like summer, (smile) although I don’t mind these cool days that we’ve been having recently. Anyway, there’s not much we can do about the way the weather shapes up on any given day, so we just have to take them in stride and make the best of them.

And talking about taking things in stride, here is an interesting quote from the Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), the famous American essayist, lecturer and poet of the 19th century. Ralph reputedly said: ‘We do not live an equal life, but one of contrasts and patchwork; now a little joy, then a sorrow, now a sin, then a generous or brave action.’

And that’s the absolute truth my people! Our lives don’t flow smoothly from one day or moment to the next, but are constantly moving up and down; from good days to bad ones, from successes to failures, from joy to sorrow and back again.

As my One More Day Daily Meditations for People with Chronic Illness says: ‘A wholesome life, a productive life, a good life – whatever we call it – is not a shimmering length of perfectly woven cloth. It’s more like a patchwork quilt set together by resourceful hands. We cannot choose to discard a bad experience or a poor decision; instead, we piece it into the total colourful work that is life.’

And that’s absolutely more truth there my people! We can’t completely ignore the less than stellar experiences and/ or decisions we make over a life time, but have to weave them into our consciousness, because they are all a part of our lives, they make us what and who we are.

Yes, our lives are just like a patchwork quilt made from many different experiences. I guess the old fogeys would remember those beautiful patchwork quilts that existed when we were growing up.

Yes Friends, our lives are ones of contrasts; contrasts that we have to take and turn into unique and beautiful patterns, if we want to truly enjoy our days on planet earth.  

Now my brethren, let’s turn to another insightful quote, this one our Bit, from the Good Book as penned by Cousin Sol in his role as Preacher and Teacher. ‘Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not (before the evil days come), nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say I have no pleasure in them.’

That’s certainly wisdom and common sense, because remember that though Sol is writing about things that happen in old age, it’s advice that’s actually meant for the young. We ought to remember and pay serious attention to our God while in the springtime of our lives, because when the winter comes around we possibly won’t be interested in life, or even able to enjoy it.

Now let’s address some scripture that highlights and supports the contentions of our Bit. Cousin Sol himself, in Proverbs gives us the gold standard. ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and (even) when he is old, he will not depart from it.

And the scholars explain: ’22:6. Train up a child refers to the total process of moulding a child’s life. The word ‘train’ (chanak) comes from the root word meaning to “put into the mouth” and implies the idea of conditioning the palate. Thus, parental training should help children develop a taste for the things of God.

The biblical pattern of effective parental training emphasizes a balance of instruction and discipline (cf. Eph.6:1-4). The ideal parent is to be neither overly authoritarian nor overly permissive. Rather, he must balance LOVE and discipline as not to “provoke” his child to rebellion.

When he is old means simply “when he is grown up,” or a mature adult. It does not refer to the elderly years. The verse stresses the simple principle that education in the home forms the man throughout his lifetime.’

And that last sentence Friends is the gospel truth! The foundation that we receive at home will go with us throughout our lives, and if that foundation is not built on a solid, godly footing, then we will most likely drift and waiver and be double minded and insecure for most of our lives.

Remember the old saying; ‘Charity begins at home.’ It’s ever so true my people, for if we aren’t taught properly at home, then we won’t be able to behave properly outside of it. And unfortunately that is what has happened to a large part of this current generation; they haven’t been taught properly at home.

For whatever reasons, be they the busyness of their parents’ lives, or their fear of offending the children through proper discipline, or simply parents who don’t care, the youth of today are sadly unprepared for godly living today. 

And we’ll end today with a great example of godly parenting. This deals with Josiah, one of Judah’s kings. The Good Book tells it thus: ‘Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem one and thirty years.  And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of David his father, and declined (did not turn aside) neither to the right hand, nor to the left.

For in the eight year of his reign, while he was yet young, he began to seek after the God of David his father: and in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem from the high places (places of pagan worship), and the groves (wooden images), and the carved images, and the molten images.’ (2 Chr.34:1-3)

Now Bruh David was not Josiah’s biological father, just his forefather. And I don’t know how Josiah got so godly, because both his father Amon and his grandfather Manasseh did that which was evil in the Lord’s sight.

The scholars tell us: ‘34:2. Josiah is commended as a godly king whose faith took a straight course and who was unequalled by any Judean king in his concern for the law of God (cf. 2 Kin.22:1-2, 23-25).’

Ah Friends, how many young people of today would ever be so brave and godly eh? Not too many. And we only have ourselves to blame, because we didn’t do a good enough job raising them.

However my people, it’s not too late, we can still make some amends for our less than stellar parenting by keeping on trying with our children, though many are now set in their ways, but also by doing right by our grandchildren, the next generation. That’s our only hope to reverse the ungodly process that’s now in place. Much LOVE!

…it’s true you make the children…but you don’t make their minds…however you can be a major influence on them if you sincerely try…

 

 

 
 
 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 17 November 2014 Psalm 145:4

17 Nov 2014 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 Psalm 145:4.  One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.

‘Monday, Monday! Oh how I LOVE you! Can’t wait for you to come around, so that I can get back into the wicked world and work for Jesus!’ And suddenly there erupts a barrage of inflammatory and abusive language. (smile)

Okay, okay. So I am laying it on a bit thick. But Friends, technically speaking, that’s how we ought to be; anxious to get out into the evil world and let the heathen know about Jesus and His awesome free gifts of salvation and eternal life, through His sacrificial and substitutionary death on the cross at Calvary.

But I guess most of us are miffed at having to get up and go out and earn a living, especially in the cold, snowy weather that’s currently permeating my area. But them’s the breaks yes Friends!

So we had better get accustomed to it, otherwise we’re only going to stress out ourselves more than is necessary, and always begin the workweek on the wrong foot, behind the eight ball. Ah Lord eh! When are going to get out of this bad habit? (smile)

Anyway, to help the situation, let’s sing our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, in full, sweet, heavenly tones. As one great voice now: ‘Oh Lord God Almighty, Creator of the universe and all therein!

We, your humble servants, praise your Holy Name and thank you that this Monday morning we have jobs to go to; jobs we don’t like, jobs that are unfair, difficult and even dangerous, but which serve a useful purpose here on earth; keeping lives and families together.

We also thank you Father for the renewed vitality and enthusiasm you’ve wrought in our weary souls over the last two days. It’s that rejuvenation of Spirit which allows us now to sally forth with confidence into the evil, ungodly world that surrounds us, to begin a new week of work, constantly buffeted and bombarded by the enemy’s wicked taunts, wiles and lies.

But heavenly Father, we’re not afraid, for we know we’re invincible, sure conquerors, once we’re wearing your powerful, protective spiritual armour. We surrender our all to you, and humbly ask that you let your incredible aura of LOVE, the Holy Spirit, lead and guide all your servants as we go out to meet the enemy in battle.

Fill us with steadfast faith, so that we can make worthwhile inroads into the enemy’s ranks, and thereby further your glorious kingdom. We pray this in the Holy Name of your Son, and our Saviour, Jesus Christ. AMEN!’

Now that wasn’t so bad, was it? At least it energized us and lifted our spirits so that we can lose our miserable, pitiful attitude and can get on victoriously with life, as we ought to. That means turning to our Bit. ‘One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts.

And as we saw yesterday through Moses’ command, (Deut. 6:6-9) teaching our children about Almighty God and all the great and wonderful things He has done down through the ages is essential, absolutely necessary, if we want to propagate Him and His Word to future generations.

How do you think it got to us eh, so many thousands of years later? Because one generation told the other. But we, in our proud, high-minded and busy world, considered it not important enough to spend the time teaching it to our children. And that’s one of the main reasons why we now have such disobedient, uncouth, ungrateful, ignorant children in this ungodly society!

Remember Cousin Sol’s wise words though my people. ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and (even) when he is old, he will not depart from it.’ (Prov.22:6) And that’s indisputable, undeniable, gospel truth my brethren!

But I think we need to check out the scholars’ explanation here, so that we get it right. ’22:6. Train up a child refers to the total process of molding a child’s life. The word ‘train’ (chanak) comes from the root word meaning to “put into the mouth” and implies the idea of conditioning the palate.

Thus parental training should help children develop a taste for the things of God. The biblical pattern of effective parental training emphasizes a balance of instruction and discipline (cf. Eph.6:1-4). The ideal parent is to be neither overly authoritarian nor overly permissive. Rather, he must balance LOVE and discipline so as not to “provoke” his child to rebellion.

When he is old means simply, “when he is grown up,” or a mature adult. It does not refer to his elderly years. The verse stresses the simple principle that education in the home forms the man throughout his lifetime.’

More gospel truth my brethren! As the old people so rightfully said; charity, or LOVE begins at home! Home is where the basic fundamentals of life, including God, and decent living ought to be taught!

Sadly though, that no longer seems to be the way. The world, through radio, television and the ever invasive and pervasive social media are now our children’s teachers. So what else can we expect eh, but unruly, ungodly, worldly children… and eventually adults.

But as I said yesterday Friends, all is not lost, we still have some time to teach them about Jehovah God and His mighty and wonderful acts – don’t know how much though. So please, let’s get on with it nuh. Ask the Lord to show you how to address the matter at this late stage, and He will surely give you the necessary guidance.

We certainly don’t want to be known as the generation that allowed God to go under, do we? Absolutely not! Then let’s get a move on, for time is of the essence. Much LOVE!

…Jesus is depending on each generation to keep His name and Word alive…by passing it on to the next one…

 

 

 

 

Today”s Scrip-Bit 12 July 2014 Proverbs 15:5

12 Jul 2014 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Christian Thoughts and Inspiration., Daily Devotion, Daily Inspiration, Inspirational Living, Spiritual Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Proverbs 15:5.     A fool despiseth his father’s instruction: but he that regardeth (keeps, accepts) reproof is prudent (sensible).

‘Saturday, oh glorious summer Saturday! Wherefore hast thou taken so long to come? I have been waiting with bated breath to see your bright sunshine, bathed in skies of heavenly blue;

To feel your cool and gentle breezes caress my warm skin, as they blow through the trees, and like an invisible partner, cause the leaves to dance to their vibrant riddim. Breezes that come from whence – no one knows; and whither they go – no one knows.

I’ve been longing to hear the birds sing their beautiful songs of praise to their Creator, as they sense your presence in the light that’s washing o’er the distant eastern horizon. Meanwhile, my soul is joyfully anticipating the tender and sensuous sight of the blood red petals of a rose opening up, virgin-like, to your irresistible charm, as the busy honey bee flitters around her, like a bashful suitor afraid to press his claim of LOVE!’

Oh Friends, even if I do say so myself, I like it! But they were God inspired words. I just didn’t have anything to write about and that’s where He led me. I guess He saw that my heart was in a poetic mood this morning and allowed me that small indulgence. Because I haven’t written anything like that, in that vein, for … for so long, that only the Lord alone knows.

Since He drafted me into writing the Bit, it seems like I’ve given up all other kinds of writing. Ah mih people, our great and wonderful God does move in mysterious ways yes! Now I’ve always considered myself somewhat of a writer, but definitely never envisioned myself writing the kind of scriptural stuff that the Lord has called me to do.

I’m trying my best to be obedient to His will, but I haven’t given up hope of writing other stuff, for as far as I’m concerned they can all co-exist. Let’s hope that is also a part of His plan, because I have so much other interesting – for want of a better word – worldly stuff of life and LOVE, just waiting to be published. It would be a crying shame to let all that go to waste.

However, the Lord is running the show, and I’m here valiantly trying to follow our Bit, not despising our heavenly Father’s instruction. (smile) ‘A fool despiseth his father’s instruction: but he that regardeth (keeps, accepts) reproof is prudent (sensible).

Oh my people, those words are filled with so much truth, it’s not funny! And the writer of most of Proverbs, Cousin Sol, who was reputed to be the wisest man ever, considered them so important that he reiterated them in different ways. Today we’re going to look at several scriptures, all within Proverbs, that deal with those sentiments.

Cousin Sol seems to have had a fixation on wisdom and foolishness because he devoted most of his writings in Proverbs to a comparison and contrast between the two. Listen up to these scriptures that corroborate our Bit.

He opens Proverbs 10 – the wise and foolish contrasted – with these words. ‘The proverbs of Solomon. A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish son is the heaviness (grief) of his mother.’ (Prov.10:1) No parent will doubt those words! Oh, and by the way, they don’t only pertain to sons, but also to daughters. (smile) I guess the correct word would be ‘child’ instead of ‘son.’

And later on in Proverbs 15, Cousin Sol declares: ‘A wise son maketh a glad father: but a foolish man despiseth his mother.’ (Prov.15:20) But isn’t it strange how Sol keeps turning the negative aspect of the situation towards the mother? Doesn’t a wise son make a mother glad too? I would hate to think that I didn’t make my mother glad. (smile)

Anyway, in chapter 17 – Moral, ethical, and spiritual precepts (cont’d) – Cousin Sol tells us that: ‘He that begetteth a fool (scoffer) doeth it to his sorrow; and the father of a fool hath no joy.’ (Prov.17:21) That’s indisputable truth my fellow parents!

And a few verses later, he pipes up: ‘A foolish son is a grief to his father, and bitterness to her that bare him.’ (Prov.17:25) At last Sol seems to be including the father in the negative aspect of the situation. (smile)

But he doesn’t stop there. In chapter 19, more moral, ethical and spiritual precepts, he solemnly declares: ‘A foolish son is the calamity (ruin) of his father: and the contentions of a wife are a continual dropping (an unending irritation).’ (Prov.19:13)

Oh, oh, I’ll leave that last statement alone, (smile), but remember Cousin Sol was a wise man, and he had oodles of wives, so he must know what he’s talking about ladies.

And the scholars, in their wisdom, tell us: ’19:13. The foolish son or the contentious wife ruins a man’s life and home.’

Truer words were never spoken Friends. Now don’t hunger for my head ladies, because that statement is gospel truth!

So Friends, I guess we’ll all agree that a wayward, stubborn child is a burden and a disappointment to their parents. But how do most of them get to be that way eh? They’re not all born that way, but a lot of it has to do with our parenting.

And Cousin Sol advises us on that topic: ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and (even) when he is old, he will not depart from it.’ (Prov.22:6)

That means rearing a child on the principles of the Good Book with a proper balance of LOVE and discipline. But unfortunately most of the children today are not brought up that way, therefore we cannot expect anything other than the undisciplined, ungodly, lustful behaviour from them.

And we’ll close with one more verse that proves the point. ‘The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.’ (Prov.29:15)

Oh Friends, that’s why so many children are the way they are today; they’ve been left to their own devices too much, plus the rod of correction and reproof has not been used on them enough! End of story! Much LOVE!

…we can’t expect to raise wise, obedient children…when we’re not leading them along wise paths based on God’s Word…you can’t plant peas and expect to reap corn…

 

 
 

 

 

Today’s Scrip-Bit 11 October 2012 Proverbs 22:6

11 Oct 2012 Leave a comment

by randyobrien50 in Inspirational Living Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Proverbs 22:6.    Train up a child in the way he should go: and (even) when he is old, he will not depart from it.
 
Ah Friends, welcome to the world of the lonely writer, especially when he doesn’t know what to write. (smile) Contrary to what many may think when they see all the celebrity authors out and about, writing is indeed a lonely profession, because you spend so much time alone, either putting ideas together, doing research, and finally trying to put it all into an interesting, readable format. And today that’s getting even more difficult because the world wants something new and fresh and thrilling every day. That’s the new norm, and that’s also partly why there is so much rubbish out there being passed off as writing. Everybody with a computer can call themselves writers now. But like everything else that’s too free and available, the standards are getting lower and lower daily. Now, it’s no harm to admit, that even in this supposed action age, most of us live boring, humdrum, repetitive lives, that’s why we hunger and thirst after the exciting lives that the new-age celebrities are supposed to live, as portrayed by the media and all its machinations. But Friends, a lot of that is indeed media manipulation, and what we should really be hungering and thirsting after is righteousness, as Jesus said in the Beatitudes, (Matt.5:6) because then we’ll truly have an exciting life of our own, we’ll truly be filled. When righteousness becomes our goal, then we’ll have something solid and worthwhile within ourselves to live by, and won’t have to live in a world of make-believe, where we put the mostly dumb, immoral, uneducated, insipid, ungodly, evil lifestyles of today’s rich and famous up on a pedestal and worship them as idols, as we’re currently doing. Now I don’t know where all of this is leading to, but it’s where I was guided when I asked the Lord for guidance. But it’s truly sad to see so many of our young people get so caught up in the nonsense of this modern society, and don’t have a clue as to what real life is all about. Unfortunately we can’t blame the ungodly, media, business and everybody else for this sad state of affairs. We the parents have to accept a sizeable portion of the blame too, since it’s obvious we never raised them up as we should have. That means we have not followed our Bit. ‘Train up a child in the way he should go: and (even) when he is old, he will not depart from it.’ And we cannot dispute that fact Friends, because most of us were raised properly, and though we occasionally got off-track, we never really strayed far from the straight and narrow. As the fellow in the song says – I don’t remember his name or the song title – but he declares that though he didn’t live the way God wanted, he never forgot His precepts, so when times got real rough, he knew exactly whom to turn to for help and forgiveness. Unfortunately though, too many of our children and young adults don’t have a clue about the precepts of God. What a glaring shame my brethren! And I like how the scholars explain our Bit: ‘Train up a child refers to the total process of moulding a child’s life. The word train (chanak) comes from the root meaning to “put into the mouth” and implies the idea of conditioning the palate. Thus, parental training should help children develop a taste for the things of God. The biblical pattern of effective parental training emphasizes a balance of instruction and discipline (cf. Eph. 6:1-4). The ideal parent is to be neither overly authoritarian nor overly permissive. Rather, he must balance LOVE and discipline so as not to ‘provoke’ his child to rebellion. When he is old means simply, “when he is grown up,” or a mature adult. It does not refer to his elderly years. The verse stresses the simple principle that education in the home forms the man throughout his lifetime.’ And is that last line a gospel, eternal and living truth, or what my people? What the children learn at home is indeed what’s going to be the basic foundation of their entire lives! What did the old people say? Charity (LOVE) begins at home, or something to that effect. In fact, most of what we learn at home sets the direction for our lives, starting in the early formative years, when we’re very innocent and very impressionable. Oh Friends, I’m chuckling now, since I’ve finally found out where my earlier rambling was leading. And all I can say is ‘Praise the Lord, for He is indeed worthy to be praised!’ He promises never to leave or forsake those who come to Him in sincerity for help, and I can certainly testify to His faithfulness because this Bit today was written, more than most days, through His help and guidance. But getting back to our topic. It’s surely disappointing to see the falling standards and values of our young people in almost every aspect of their lives. However, on a more positive note, remember, while there’s life, there’s always hope, and it’s not too late for us to work on some of our adult children, even if it’s only through prayer. And for the younger ones, we can make a conscious effort to point them in the right direction. We’ve made a total mess of that duty my people. So let’s see if we can make some amends nuh, by at least raising the young ones right. Oh my brethren, we’ve been given another chance, let’s use it to stop the talking we’re so good at, and instead truly pay attention to what’s happening in our families, with our children. It’s the only way we can be assured that Christ’s church will live on long after we’re gone. That’s why God gave us the Ten Commandments and why He specifically told the Israelites, through Moses: ‘And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart. And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.’ (Deut.6:6-9) Sadly my people, we have not complied with those instructions as fully as we should have done, and now we’re experiencing the negative repercussions. Remember the basic law of God; whatever you sow, you shall reap. And now we’re reaping the negative harvest that we sowed through our disobedience and rebellion. But regardless of our misdeeds, we can’t give up now, we’ve got to keep plodding onward and upward, for that’s the ‘never give up’ nature of Christ’s followers. So, since the Good Book says that the Word is gained by hearing, let’s ingrain it in our children from day one nuh, by reading it to them, even if they’re too young to understand. That’s the best way to build a strong, successful foundation in the Lord. Much LOVE!…pity the children…as Jesus did…teach them to pray from an early age…  
 
 

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