By what are your children known? Do you see tendencies that, if not dealt with biblically, will produce attitudes and actions that are not pleasing to God? What will those attitudes look like if carried into adulthood? Could our lack of wise parenting hinder them as spouses and in other relationships? Today’s reading in Proverbs speaks to this issue. But good parenting, also, includes teaching our children to understand history, economics, and civic responsibility. This is not only important to our nation wherever we live but it is our responsibility before God.

And speaking of our nation, how do you view what is going on in our country? Do you believe God is chastising or pruning our nation? Could He be turning up the heat because of our rejection of Him and His truth? And are you praying about what you see happening or merely complaining?

Happy 4th of July, Everyone!!!

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.
Psalm 33.12

Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.
1 Timothy 2.1-3

Today’s Readings:

2 Chronicles 3 & 4
Psalm 79.5-10
Proverbs 20.10-12
Acts 12.1-25

Parenting & Praying for Our Nation

Proverbs 20.10-12:

Even a Child is Known by His Deeds

Verse 11 says:

Even a child is known by his deeds, whether what he does is pure and right.

Jesus said you will know a tree by its fruit. And Matthew Henry said about verse 11 in today’s reading, “even a young tree by its first fruits, a child by his childish things.”

What sinful attitudes and behaviors do you see in your children?

We need to seek God and His wisdom about those tendencies. We cannot allow them to be selfish, throw tantrums, or be cruel and unkind, thinking they will just outgrow it.

How can we expect them to be good spouses, employees, parents, and citizens if we don’t train them? Our desire should be to see them live within God’s circle of blessings by teaching them to live obediently.

Our training should, also, include teaching them history, good economics, and civic responsibility. And, as Christians, we’re to help them understand God’s story, His principles, and the gospel. We can’t leave that to the church.

Why History?

God frequently reminded His people to remember. They were to remember what He had done for them in the past, remember His warnings and commands, and remember the consequences of both living rightly and living sinfully.

Winston Churchill may have been paraphrasing a quote by George Santayana when he said, “Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it.” George Santayana actually said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” Either way, knowing and understanding history is important.

Good Economics

The Bible is full of verses pointing us to the importance of the wise use of our resources. Just a sampling:

Civic Responsibility

Being good citizens is part of loving our neighbors (Matt. 22.36-40) and being salt and light in the world (Matt. 5.13-16).

Faithful Stewards

So, we must do our part to teach and train them. And we will answer to God for our faithfulness to the task.

Proverbs 19.18 says:

Discipline your son while there is hope, and do not desire his death.

But, ultimately, our children are responsible for their choices.

Adult Children

As I said, we are all responsible for our parenting. But even the best parenting is not a guarantee that our children will always make wise choices. It’s important to remember that there are three things at work in the lives of our children: our parenting, their own wills, and the Holy Spirit.

We are responsible before God to be faithful to the best of our ability and understanding. But we must ultimately trust in the sovereignty of God who loves our children even more than we do.

I, also, understand that while even unbelievers are responsible for their parenting, many parents come to faith in Christ after their children are grown or partially grown. Others have not raised their children full-time because of divorce or poor life choices.

We should remember that it is never too late to repent, ask for forgiveness, and be the best example we can be starting where we are. God’s mercies are new every morning and, even though He doesn’t remove all consequences, He is faithful even when we haven’t always been.

Psalm 79.5-10:

God Our Father

God is, also, a Father. The Only Perfect Father. And He is always training, growing, and sometimes disciplining His children.

Let’s look at a portion of verses 5-7 in today’s psalm:

How long, LORD? Will You be angry forever? … the kingdoms that do not call on Your name. For they have devoured Jacob, and laid waste his dwelling place.

God allowed other nations, ungodly ones at that, to have success in battle, to confiscate their goods, and at times, even to take His people into captivity because of their repeated unfaithfulness to Him. He used, and can still use, the wicked for His holy just, and righteous purposes.

Not all tests and trials are the result of sin and disobedience. Sometimes, our Heavenly Father, the Divine Vine Dresser, is pruning us so we can bear more fruit (Jn. 15). But if hardships are God’s discipline, the answer lies in the rest of these verses and in others like 2 Chronicles 7.14 which says:

If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

And here in Psalm 79.8-9:

Oh, do not remember former iniquities against us! Let Your tender mercies come speedily to meet us, For we have been brought very low. Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of Your name; And deliver us, and provide atonement for our sins, for Your name’s sake!

Could these be promises and warnings for us, too?

Promises & Warnings

While these promises were specifically written to the nation of Israel and while He does not have a specific covenant with the United States or any other nation today, the principles hold true for us the spiritual children of God.

God is still looking for those who will humble themselves, search their own hearts, and pray. Most of us, myself included, have done our share of complaining about the problems we see in our country, but are we praying for our nation and our leaders or merely complaining?

Not only are the promises true for us in principle but so are the warnings. We should never think that our nation is immune to the catastrophic consequences that can come if we continue down this road of evil and a complete rejection of God and His Word.

May those of us who know the truth and see the warnings be faithful in prayer. May we truly humble ourselves, repent of our own complaining and ungodliness and stand up for God and His Truth. If not, the enemy is already at the gate and we should not think that God could not or will not let them in. The red flags are everywhere.

Today’s Other Readings:

2 Chronicles 3 & 4:

The Grandeur of Solomon’s Temple

I don’t think we can even imagine the grandeur of Solomon’s Temple, not even in our high-tech Hollywood world. The gold and brass and handiwork alone must have stunned the senses! The craftsmanship and attention to detail were unlike anything else.

As magnificent as it must have been, even in that, God was more concerned about the heart of those who built it and those who worshiped there. What have you done and what do you do on a regular basis to prepare your heart to be a temple for worship to the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the Creator, the Great I AM?

Bow your heart before Him today. Ask Him to clean it up and make it a holy place where you can worship Him completely.

Because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy’ (1 Pet. 1.16).

Acts 12.1-25:

Do You Believe … When You Pray?

Peter had been arrested, perhaps doomed to be killed like the Apostle James when an angel woke him and released him from prison. In the meantime, the believers were gathered together praying for him. Yet when He showed up at the door, they, at first, didn’t believe it was him. Instead, they said, “It must be his angel.”

How about us, do we really believe prayer changes things, or is it too often just a religious activity?

Let’s purpose to be more faithful pray-ers and let’s make sure our prayers are filled with faith!!!

Lord, help us to be Your humble servants today and every day whether parenting our children or living out our lives in a world that seems to be going crazy. Help us become people of prayer. Give the men and women and young people of our nation a desire to know You, to turn from wickedness and unbelief, beginning with us. And as we do, please hear from heaven, forgive our sin, and heal our land. In Jesus name, amen.

Coming Up:

In the coming days, we’ll talk about the importance of godly friends, why we can’t think straight, false shepherds, the consequences of bad advice, and discuss whether there is a formula for good parenting.

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Blessings as you grow in Christ,
Donna ♥

Note about this post:

I began blogging through the Bible in 2012 and have done so every year since then. These posts are the product of many edits and additions throughout those years. Some days I make major changes, other days fewer. 

A while ago, I read Jen Wilkin’s book None Like Him about the attributes of God. One is His incomprehensibility. In it, she says, “God is incomprehensible. This does not mean that he is unknowable, but that he is unable to be fully known.”

I have found that to be true each year as I’ve gone back through the Bible. Sometimes I find myself feeling as if a passage just appeared there for the first time. I’m reminded that no matter how many times we read through the Bible, we have only scratched the surface. I hope you feel the same.

Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways,
And how small a whisper we hear of Him!
But the thunder of His power who can understand?” (Job 26.14)

I sometimes LINKUP with these blogs.