This song rings ever truer for me these days, my travel schedule has been keeping me away from home the past couple of weeks, and the next two weeks are not much brighter. No this isn't just a "James is whining" post, I've got a point.
As I was walking down the steps of the YMCA in Raleigh (nice brand new facility by the way), I noticed one particular verse from Proverbs posted next to a collage of kids pictures. For the life of me I can't remember the chapter and verse and my online searching struck out. So to paraphrase in the "Non-King James Version":
"Raise your children in the ways of the Lord, and when they grow old they won't
depart from them."
For me it made me question my current career. What was I teaching my kids? Would they draw from my absence a knowledge of sacrifice to provide for my family? or "Would they simply remember it as a dad who wasn't there for ball practice and stormy nights?"
But, as I said, this post isn't just about me. The verse that I can't remember, trust me it's there in Proverbs, should cause us to examine every aspect of our lives and our behavior. What are our children learning from us? It's really easy to point the finger at the TV, or video games, but in reality our children learn from us daily from not only our words, but also our actions and those lessons reach far deeper and remain far longer than any others they'll ever learn.
Perhaps in today's world Christians can have a bigger impact on the world not by seeking change in our communities and country, but by changing our homes.
Just a thought!
30 January 2008
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4 comments:
It's Proverbs 22:6. I never remember scripture addresses. I had to look it up.
For me, it's an interesting verse for a couple of reasons. First, I've been in churches in which that verse was preached as a dogmatic promise from God. If children are raised right, they'll follow the Lord. And parents whose children go astray feel like total failures. Some of the church people even look down on them.
That's a shame because Proverbs are not ironclad promises. They are observations of life that are probably true. In other words, true in most instances, all things being equal. There are proverbs that say the righteous never go hungry. Yet Paul went without meals more than once.
Second, just like you said, it ought to make us think about our impact. Not just video games and movies, but what our kids see in us. Do we tell white lies to get off the phone with someone, then get angry when our kids lie? Do we talk bad at home about church people and then get upset when our kids don't want to go to church? Etc.
I keep going back to it- we don't preach sermons or teach classes. We ARE the sermons- living, breathing, 24/7 sermons. Hopefully playing to an audience of One, so that we can influence everyone.
How's the coffee, my friend? I need to get back to 2 cups per day.
Thanks Brian for helping a brother out.
Is that down to 2 cups per day, or up to 2 cups per day.
At least tomorrow morning I'll get a cup of my own home brew before hitting the gym and then the road to Nash Vegas.
Friday morning will likely have to be a post run cup at Panera Bread or a cup on the way home to stay awake.
Panera...mmmmmmm. The one near me (Valley View) has a fireplace. I remember running in the cold and then having coffee and a bagel a couple of months ago.
I need to get down from 4-6 cups to just 2 cups.
Nash Vegas?
Peace.
Nash Vegas?
Sorry, Nashville. I believe the term originated with a manager I had in place down here.
Not sure whether the original connotation was negative or positive. Just kinda stuck.
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