Faith for My Children

I haven’t been posting here for a long time. Life has been a relentless flood, problems with work, all the hassle and things that need to be worked out for changing work, and my sons’ exams. The added pressure has been testing my faith, for sure!

One day, I realized why I was so uptight, unhappy, worried and fearful: I did not really believe, deep in my heart, that God’s goodness goes beyond me and extends to my children. Now once I figured that out, the next step was to study the Scriptures to see what God has to say about it.

Psalm 100:4-5 (NIV84) - Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

This was the passage that got me started nearly 20 years ago, when I wanted to let the Bible teach me about worship. And it promises that God’s faithfulness continues through all generations. Does that include my children? The problem is that “generations” is too wide a scope for me. It makes me imagine hordes and hordes of people, but not MY kids (which is what I am really concerned about, right?).

Genesis 26:4-5 (NKJV) - And I will make your descendants multiply as the stars of heaven; I will give to your descendants all these lands; and in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed;  because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes, and My laws.

God appeared to Isaac and made the above promise, that he would be blessed, and that it was because of his father Abraham. Don’t let yourself be intimidated by the part “… kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes and my laws.” I know it sounded like Abraham fulfilled all the commands in Exodus, Numbers, Leviticus and Deuteronomy, but the fact is, God did NOT speak all those to Abraham. Study what God commanded Abraham to do, and you will realize it is a lot simpler than what most of us expect!

But all that is Abraham and Isaac. How about us? 

Proverbs 14:26 (NIV84) - He who fears the LORD has a secure fortress, and for his children it will be a refuge.

Me fearing the LORD will be a refuge for my children. There are many things that the Bible defines as fearing the LORD, but they have something in common: they are a refuge for my children. That means they help protect them and shelter them in days that are increasingly dangerous and treacherous for all who want to live godly lives unto the LORD.

So what am I do to? What is my part in all this?

Ephesians 6:4 (NIV 84) - Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.

David gives a guideline to what that means to me as a father.

Psalm 34:11-14 (NKJV) - Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

Who is the man who desires life, and loves many days, that he may see good?
Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit.
Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it.

And as I labour in that (parenting IS hard work, don’t let anyone convince you otherwise), I need a vision of my goal. “Begin with the end in mind” is the management mantra that really applies here. What is the end I desire to see for my sons?

Isaiah 44:1-5 (NKJV) - “Yet hear now, O Jacob My servant, and Israel whom I have chosen.

Thus says the Lord who made you and formed you from the womb, who will help you:

‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant; and you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
For I will pour water on him who is thirsty, and floods on the dry ground;
I will pour My Spirit on your descendants, and My blessing on your offspring;
They will spring up among the grass like willows by the watercourses.’
One will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’; another will call himself by the name of Jacob;
Another will write with his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and name himself by the name of Israel.

My sons are to see themselves as devoted to the LORD, in both senses of the word: I have devoted them to the LORD and their lives are given over to his loving hands, and they are to love the LORD themselves, out of their own will, and be loyal to him. And God himself promises to be devoted to them, to teach them himself.

Isaiah 54:13 (NKJV) - All your children shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children.

Conclusion:

Faith, confidence and assurance are to be based on God’s word. Now that I have received light on the matter, I have to keep the above Scriptures in front of my eyes (keep reading and re-reading them) and in my heart (keep thinking about them) until they bring me the life God promised (Proverbs 4:21-22). And if you are a parent, I hope this post will encourage your heart and strengthen your resolve to raise children glorifying the LORD. Be blessed!

Praying Daniel Style 01

Recently I have been going back to praying Daniel style.

Last year I started praying Daniel style. I take the Hebrew words used to describe Daniel's prayer and search for other verses related to those words, then use them in prayer.

For your reference, I blogged about those words here: - http://jvworship.blogspot.sg/2013/08/prayer-life-lessons.html

Here are my passages for today:

1) Bless - 

Psalm 104:1-4 (NKJV) - Bless the Lord, O my soul!O Lord my God, You are very great:You are clothed with honor and majesty,Who cover Yourself with light as with a garment,Who stretch out the heavens like a curtain.
He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters,Who makes the clouds His chariot,Who walks on the wings of the wind,Who makes His angels spirits,His ministers a flame of fire.

2) Bow down - I take this to refer to humbling myself.

1 Peter 5:5-7 (NKJV) - “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

3) Give thanks (lift up hands) - 

Psalm 63:3-4 - Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You.Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your name.

4) To gush over, to pour out - 

This is the point I bring up whatever is on on my heart. Today I prayed especially for success in my work.

5) To make supplication (implore for mercy) - 

Isaiah 30:18 (NIV 84) - Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him!

The word for "gracious" in the above passage is taken from the same root as "make supplication". So today, instead of asking God for grace and mercy, I looked at his word to see his willingness to be merciful towards me.

So that was my prayer outline for today. Hope you find it useful. Be blessed!