What is the first thing we focus on when we have children? Most of the time, we think about how we will dress the baby, even before they are born. We spend time shopping for beautiful clothes, eagerly anticipating dressing our little gifts from God. Indeed children are a gift from God, as Psalm 127:3 reminds us.
While dressing them physically is crucial for their survival, there is another kind of dressing that is even more important: dressing them for eternity. How are we preparing our children for their eternal life? Unlike clothes that can be handed down, eternal life is very personal. It cannot be borrowed or donated; it must be pursued by each individual.
God’s Word is not something to be shared as a mere routine; it is a matter of life and death for our children. What words are we giving our children every day? Proverbs 1:8 (AMPC) says, “My son, hear the instruction of your father; reject not nor forsake the teaching of your mother.” What words do they carry when they leave home?
Parents play a vital role in equipping the next generation with God’s Word. Schools and even churches cannot fully meet the spiritual needs of our children. We must take responsibility and actively train our children, dressing them for victory by teaching them the Word of God.
God gave a command to the Israelite parents, and the same command applies to us: Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (AMPC) says, “And these words which I am commanding you this day shall be [first] in your [own] minds and hearts; [then] you shall whet and sharpen them so as to make them penetrate, and teach and impress them diligently upon the [minds and] hearts of your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up.”
Reflective Action
- How would you rate your stewardship of God’s Word to your children?
- What action can you take today in response to God’s command?
- How are your children spiritually dressed?
Let's do what we have been called to do and in essence raise a godly generation.
