Priorities
The world tells us to pursue degrees, pleasure, fame and fortune. But when we look intently into the eyes of our children, what’s really important becomes clear. Our titles and possessions will fade away, and our accomplishments will be forgotten; but the spiritual investment that we make in the lives of our children will remain throughout eternity.
As we worship our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and celebrate Mothers, may we stand firm in our commitment to the spiritual health of our families. John 10:10 tells us that the devil “comes to steal, kill, and destroy” and he is wreaking havoc in a lot of families today. If we truly want our children to live for the Lord, then we must be devoted to fostering their relationship with Him just as Joshua was in Joshua 24:15 when he said “as for me and my house we will serve the Lord”.
In the film Cheaper by the Dozen, Steve Martin’s character, Tom Baker, decides to walk away from his dream of coaching college football at his alma mater because of the strain it places on his family. When his boss suggests that he may have some regrets for such a decision, Baker says, “If I mess up raising my kids, nothing I achieve will matter much.”
Some of us here today may never have carnal children of our own, but let me assure you that you can still have an impact on the lives of those around you and have many spiritual children. Spiritual parents are very important.
When I was a teenager, I saw a picture that I never forgot. It had a young child standing on a beach looking out across the ocean and it read: “Priorities – A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove…but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.” And may I add that heaven may be filled with some more people because I made a difference in the life of a child. Today this picture hangs in my office to remind me of the importance of my ministry to my children. Proverbs 22:6 tells us to “train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” No matter what the world says, raising children is a very important responsibility and privilege. May we always treat it that way and give our best to this high calling.
~Pastor Jonathan English