This passage of
scripture is ordinarily used in encouraging young people to remember God and to
give their lives to the Lord; however, I believe there are several lessons
contained in this text that would be applicable for parents.
First of all, parents should remember that children
are not ours to rear as we choose to do so. The Psalmist declared,” Behold
children are a heritage from the Lord…” (Psalm 127:3). We should have the same
attitude of Hannah when she made this vow to God, “O Lord of hosts, if You will
indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not
forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I
will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall come
upon his head” (I Samuel 1:11). Our attitude should be same, that is, when God
gives us children, we should give them back to Him by rearing them in the
“training and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4).
Second, youth is the time to teach our children of
God and Jesus Christ. Their hearts are receptive and not filled with prejudice.
Children trust their parents and they can be impressed with the teaching they
receive from the Word of God. Jochebed, the mother of Moses, must have greatly
influenced him while he was in her care. It was in his adulthood that this man
of God made an important decision as is recorded in Hebrews 11:24-25, “By faith
Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s
daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to
enjoy the passing pleasures of sin.” Then there is the case of Timothy who was
greatly influenced in his youth to give his life to Christ. The apostle wrote
concerning who taught Timothy the Word of God as found in the book of 2
Timothy: “When I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which
dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded
in you also’ (2 Timothy 1:5). “And that from childhood you have known the Holy
Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which
is in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15).
Third, parents should realize that soon the difficult
(evil) days will come. Parents will not always be around to help their children
in making the decision as to what is right or wrong. It is when the child is at
home that parents must prepare them to be able to face the “difficult days”
when they are away from home. There is the example of a young soldier in the Far East when the time came for him and his buddies to
have a period of ‘rest and relaxation’. The decision was made by the majority
of the soldiers to go to a town and commit sins of immorality and drunkenness.
The young Christian soldier refused to follow the crowd because he remembered
that his parents were praying for him and his safety. He also remembered the
lessons from the Word of God relative to keeping his body pure (I Timothy
4:12).
Fourth, parents know their children are growing older
and will soon leave home in a matter of a few years. It is during the age of
innocence that children should be influenced to give their lives to the Lord.
Youth is not the only time to “remember God” but it is the best time. The case
is, the older a child becomes, the more difficult it is to make the decision to
obey the gospel. The reason being, Satan can harden the heart through the
deceitfulness of sin (Hebrews 3:12, 13).
In conclusion, the inspired writer states in this
text that there is a point of no return. There are many influences such as
higher education that can destroy the young person’s belief in God as being the
Creator of the universe and can cause one to become an agnostic or even an
atheist. The practice of sin can hardened the heart of an individual that he
will have no desire to repent and return to God. Because of the influence of
evil companions, a son or a daughter can be led astray (I Corinthians 15:33).
Many a young adult no longer has any pleasure in the former years when he was
at home and associating with friends who were Christians and all were attending
the various assemblies of the church. It is sad to say that not all stories
about ‘prodigal’ children end well as did the one in Luke chapter fifteen.
A PIECE OF
CLAY
I took a piece of plastic clay
And idly fashioned it one day,
And as my fingers pressed it still,
It moved and yielded at my will.
And idly fashioned it one day,
And as my fingers pressed it still,
It moved and yielded at my will.
I came again when days were past;
The bit of clay was hard at last,
The form I gave it still it bore,
But I could change that form no more.
The bit of clay was hard at last,
The form I gave it still it bore,
But I could change that form no more.
I took a piece of living clay,
And gently formed it day by day,
And molded with my power and art
A young child’s soft and yielding heart.
And gently formed it day by day,
And molded with my power and art
A young child’s soft and yielding heart.
I came again when days were gone;
It was a man I looked upon;
That early impress still he wore,
And I could change it never more.
It was a man I looked upon;
That early impress still he wore,
And I could change it never more.
- Author Unknown
