Wk 2 day4
Start children off [train up a child in/ KJV] on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. Proverbs 22:6 (NIV)
The difference between the two translations here is significant. One, the NIV seems almost to imply the release of a child to find their own way after starting off. The other seems to imply an ongoing relationship in which there is room for teaching and correction. It seems that those two elements are significant in that what we see today is the almost complete lack of the “training up” dynamic of child rearing. When building a strong moral foundation is not considered to be the very essence of parental responsibility in favor of “let the child develop ‘naturally’ and make up their own minds” we live with the very disasters we face today. Two or three generations on we are all paying the price for failing to “train up” our children.
As grandparents and senior church members we are given a second chance to help both parent and child to understand how imperative it is to build that foundation with Jesus our Christ as the very “cornerstone” of that foundation. Do you have grandchildren? When they visit do they see things like bible verses posted, or the Ten Commandments, or prayers of thanksgiving at meal times? Do you ever share bible stories or verses with them? Have you ever thought of volunteering for a toddler’s class, or middle schoolers in your Sunday school? The “grandparent revolution” could begin to do amazing things in the church and community. We should pray about these things. God called Elijah to come out of hiding. (1 Kings 19: 1-15) God understood Elijah’s emotional exhaustion and fear, yet he was not done with him yet. Is it time for you to come out of your “cave”?
Larry M Lawrence- Mysteries 