A Constant Reminder

“Train up a child in the way he should go,

 and when he is old he will not turn from it.”

Proverbs 22:6 (NIV)

Several years ago I was asked by an elementary principal to observe Grant, a new student in the second grade at our school. The teacher was concerned that he might have some problems focusing in class and could fall behind. She wanted me, as school nurse, to do an observation of his behavior for a few minutes in the classroom.

What I found was a student who slithered over, around and under his desk, chatted with himself and other students and looked over at me and winked “Hey Nurse Nancy. How’s your day going?” – all while the instructor taught the math lesson.

I was sure he hadn’t heard a single instruction she had given and watched as she wrote a math problem on the board and gave instructions.

“Please write this problem down in your math journal,” she told her students, “and I will give you five minutes to see if you can figure out the answer.”

“Eighteen,” we heard a voice instantly say. Shocked, the teacher and I both turned to look at Grant. “What?” she said. Grant smiled. “The answer is eighteen.”

He was right! Even though it didn’t appear that he was listening at all, he actually was.

Today’s verse in Proverbs speaks to so many of us who are praying our children are listening as we share Jesus in a world that is continually preying on their hearts.

First, look at what the verse does NOT say. It does not say that if you raise your children to know the Lord, they will never turn from Him as they get older.

Nor does it say that children who have wandered will automatically turn back to the Lord as adults. We all have the ability to make choices in our lives.

But what it DOES say is beautiful to our ears: teach your child about the Lord. Share the words of Jesus over and over and explain what love and trust, mercy and forgiveness, grace and hope mean. Then, if your child wanders down a wrong path as he gets older, God’s Word will return to him again and again.

He will be reminded in his heart of the love Jesus has for him no matter where he is or what he is doing. In other words, “he will not turn from it” because he will remember what you have taught him.

What about you and your children? Have you ever felt like giving up because they seem to totally tune you out? Do you feel like you are losing the spiritual battle for their souls?

My encouragement to you is this: please don’t give up! Our hope is in Christ alone! What we have taught and shared about Jesus will not return empty.

Just like this little boy who appeared to have not heard a word about his math lesson, and yet he did, so it is for our children and God’s Word in their hearts.

Father, thank you for your encouragement to train my children to know you. May your words stay with them always. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up . . .

Reflect

• Have you ever felt almost hopeless because of a son or daughter who has turned from the Lord even after you have shared Jesus for years?

Application

• If you have small children, teach them wisdom from the Lord through songs, videos and books and especially from the Bible. Sing along or read along with them. Pray daily for them.

• If you have older children, never miss an opportunity to give them a hug and pray over them before they leave for school or on a date. Leave Scripture love notes in their lunch boxes or backpacks or by text on their cell phones. Pray daily for them.

Power Verses

• Proverbs 22:6 (NIV) “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.”

• Isaiah 55:11 (NIV) “So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.”

• Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (NIV) “These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”

• Mark 9:24 (NIV) “Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, ‘I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief.’”

• Psalm 71:14 (NIV) “But as for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more.”

Do You Need A Time Out Lesson?

“But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah,

and Jonah was inside the fish

 three days and three nights.”

Jonah 1:17 (NIV)

My kids hated time out when they were little and got into trouble. To be honest, I think it was as much for me as it was for them. Love my kids? Passionately with every ounce in my body. Protect them if someone tried to hurt them? Like a seven foot tall gorilla with a stun gun.

But when they could not handle a situation themselves without falling apart or attacking each other, a time out seemed like the perfect answer. They could sit down and I could calm down.

I remember a few of the many reasons for assigning a time out through the years: when my son attempted to sweep up his sister in the vacuum. And when my daughters tried to darken their bedroom by putting a blanket over a light bulb and caused a fire.

Almost every time they received a time out, it served as a punishment for not obeying our rules at home. But I also reminded them that this was a perfect opportunity to think about what they had done and what they could do differently the next time. There was always a lesson to learn in each time out.

Today’s Scripture in Jonah 1:17 talks about someone else who was in time out but he wasn’t sitting on a kitchen chair thinking about his choice. He was in the belly of a whale. And it wasn’t a mom who had put him there but God.

His name was Jonah. And he had been given a specific directive by God. “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” (Jonah 1:2) But Jonah did not want to obey. Perhaps he knew about their idol worship and cruelty to prisoners of war and didn’t want to go near the people who lived there. Or maybe he just didn’t trust God to take care of him.

No matter the reason, Jonah didn’t obey and God quickly gave him a time out to think about his poor choice – by allowing him to be swallowed by a whale.

Now, can I just say here that one gulp and I think I would have been a believer and confessed my disobedience to God? I’m sure I would have. And Jonah, from the whale guts, probably prayed immediately to God and repented, thanking Him for saving his life and vowing to do exactly what God had asked him to do in the first place, by preaching to the people of Nineveh.

However God, in His infinite wisdom, allowed Jonah to sit a bit longer in time out to learn an important lesson: when God says “go,” you go. Jonah needed to be obedient to God’s directing.

Jonah also needed to understand that in His mercy and forgiveness, the Lord had provided for him and answered his prayer to save his life.

In Jonah 2:10 we read that, after three days and three nights, God commanded the whale to spit Jonah out on dry land so that he could immediately do what he should have done in the first place: preach the message of God’s destruction to the people of Nineveh if they did not repent.

Have you ever experienced a time out from God? Perhaps you didn’t find yourself on a kitchen chair and hopefully not in the belly of a whale!

Maybe the Lord prompted you to write a note or visit an elderly neighbor or buy groceries for the person in line ahead of you but you ignored that nudge because you had not yet checked off everything on your to-do list. And then you found yourself fighting a cold and not able to leave your home to do anything on your list. Did your living room resemble a whale’s belly?

Or perhaps you drove past a neighbor with a flat tire on the side of the road because you knew someone else would stop and help and besides, you were late for an important meeting, only to find yourself minutes later stopped at a railroad crossing, waiting on a slow train. And waiting and waiting. Could your car in line possibly be God’s whale think tank for you?

My encouragement today is to listen to the Lord speaking to your heart and to obey. He is faithful to His children. But if needed, He will use a time out.

Father, I want to listen and obey but sometimes I’m like Jonah. Thank you for your mercy and forgiveness and patience. And for giving me another opportunity to do exactly as you direct. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up . . .

Reflect

• Have you ever felt the Lord nudging you to do something but you chose to ignore the Spirit and make a totally different choice? Did you find yourself in a period of time out after that?

Application

• Write on a note card “Is this from you, God?” and put it in your purse. When you feel a nudge to help someone, glance at the card and ask God that simple question. Follow His guidance.

Power Verses

• Jonah 1:17 (NIV) “But the Lord provided a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was inside the fish three days and three nights.”

• Psalm 46:10 (NIV) “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

• Psalm 62:5 (NIV) “Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.”

• Proverbs 16:9 (NIV) “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”

• Psalm 32:8 (NIV) “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.”

An Automatic Win

“What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be

 against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up

 for us all – how will he not also, along with him,

graciously give us all things?”

Romans 8:31-32 (NIV)

The strategy for picking sides for our baseball games every day in elementary school was simple: fight to get Johnny on our team. We called him “Johnny 3T” because he was tall, talented and tough.

Everybody wanted Johnny.  If he was on our team, we didn’t lose – ever. When we were lucky enough to get him, we were never concerned about the opposition . . . because we had Johnny.

He would walk up to home plate, raise his bat over his shoulder, and the infield would automatically move back several steps. Sometimes he would point to the spot where he intended to hit the ball, not in arrogance but in confidence.

The outfielder in that area would immediately punch his fist into his glove and try to get ready as Johnny hit the ball but it never mattered. Having Johnny on your team was an automatic win.

We had confidence in Johnny when we played baseball as little kids but it is nothing in comparison to the confidence we should have in the power of our Heavenly Father.

In today’s Scripture, Paul asks a question that honestly does not need an answer. “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Think about it.

Can you name one single thing in your life that is more powerful than the Lord? That can overpower Him or beat Him in whatever He does?

Let’s see. A pile of unpaid bills? No. A prodigal child? Nope. The fear of failure? Nada. A marriage that is on the edge? A friend who now seems more like an enemy? Your boss who is a bully? A life-threatening disease? No. No. No and No.

God, who is for us, will never ever be overpowered by anything or anyone. Nothing, absolutely nothing can stand against Him.

We do not need a strategy or luck to get the Lord to be on our “team” because He has already chosen us as His children.

God is for us, my friends. I would consider that an automatic win.  

Father, thank you for standing for me against those situations in life that threaten every day. You are faithful in all things. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up . . .

Reflect

• Have you ever believed that you had situations in your life that God just couldn’t take care of for you?

• Did you try to fix them on your own? Were you successful?

Application

• Write down in your journal the battles that you are facing in your life today.

• Beside each one, write down Scripture that reminds you of God’s strength and power and His promises to be with you throughout everything you are facing.

Power Verses

• Romans 8:31-32 (NIV) “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all – how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?”

• Psalm 108:6 (NIV) “Save us and help us with your right hand, that those you love may be delivered.”

• Psalm 27:1 (NIV) “The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid?”

• Isaiah 40:29 (NIV) “He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.”

• Ephesians 6:10 (NIV) “ Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.”

Burned Beyond Belief

“Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes

being burned? Can a man walk on hot coals

without his feet being scorched?”

Proverbs 6:27 (NIV)

I will never forget my first Girl Scout overnight camping experience. We all took sleeping bags as well as cooking utensils, toothbrushes and extra clothes. There was a lot to see and explore but the best part was the evening campfire . . . and roasting marshmallows.

There were 30 of us campers so each girl was given only one marshmallow. It was up to us how we wanted to roast it. Some ate it “raw” without warming it at all. Some liked just a slight brown “tan” with a bit of crisp to it. But not me.

I liked mine burned on the outside and my method was simple. I would hold the roasting stick down in the flames until the marshmallow caught fire and then quickly blow it out. Best flavor in the world!

We took turns gathering around the campfire and I could hardly wait to hold my stick in the flames and watch as the marshmallow burned. But as I raised it up to blow out the flames, I realized that I had let it “cook” too long in the fire so that it was barely clinging to the stick!

And then the unthinkable happened: my marshmallow began to fall. One marshmallow! That’s all we were given: ONE! To me there was only ONE thing to do: just as it slid off the stick, I grabbed it with my hand, flames and all.

Just as quickly I realized my mistake and dropped the gooey blob but the damage was done. I had major burns on the palm and fingers of my right hand.

Look at today’s Scripture in Proverbs. Solomon warns that there is no way a man can put fire in his lap or walk on coals without being burned. What in the world is he talking about? Solomon is asking questions with obvious answers.

What do you have in your life that you are holding on to, even though you know that you are going to get “burned” by it eventually? Let’s see. What about an inappropriate relationship or a questionable business deal? Maybe it’s anger and resentment toward someone or a habit of gossiping.

It is impossible to engage in sin without escaping and suffering the consequences. Impossible.

All I could think of at the campfire was a marshmallow. I never stopped to think of the damage that would most certainly follow as I caught it – burning – in my hand.

Please look closely at your life. Holding on to sin can only result in being burned beyond belief.  

Father, I choose today to give you those sins in my life that are only going to “burn” me or those I love. Thank you for your forgiveness. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

R.A.P. it up . . .

Reflect

• Can you name something in your life that you are holding on to, even though you know it is against God’s will for you?

• What is keeping you from letting go of it and giving it to the Lord?

Application

• Ask the Lord to show you sins in your life that you are holding on to that are against His teachings in the Word.

• Beside each entry, list the people you love who could be “burned” by those sins. Confess each sin to the Lord, repent and lay them at His feet.

Power Verses

• Proverbs 6:27 (NIV) “Can a man scoop fire into his lap without his clothes being burned? Can a man walk on hot coals without his feet being scorched?”

• Luke 9:24 (NIV) “For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.”

• I John 2:15 (NIV) “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.”