| PULSE CHECK |
| "PULSE" - "the
sentiments, opinions, or attitudes current among the public or a
particular group." |
 |
"CHECK" - "to
examine something in order
to establish its state or condition." |
"PULSE
CHECK" - is a weekly reminder from CHALLENGED TO THE CORE
encouraging you to take time "to
examine your sentiments, opinions, or attitudes in order to establish
the state or condition of your life."
|
April
8, 2008
A
CHILD’S PERSPECTIVE
…and
she said to
him, “As surely as you live, my lord,
I am the woman who stood here beside you
praying
to the
Lord. I prayed for this child and the
Lord
has granted
me what I asked of Him.
1
Samuel 1:26-27
The
story of
Hannah in the 1 Samuel is a very inspiring one. She was one of two
wives of
Elkanah, his other wife had children but Hannah had none. They would go
to
Shiloh to worship every year, there Elkanah would give portions of meat
to his
wife Peninnah and her sons, but to Hannah he would give a double
portion
because he loved her so much. His other
wife would tease Hannah and be mean because she had no children. To
make a
wonderful story short Hannah eventually prayed to God and asked Him for
a
child. She told the Lord that if He would give her a son she would
dedicate him
to the Lord’s service and that a razor would never touch his head. Well God remembered her prayer and blessed
her with a son. How awesome is that!?
Hannah was true to her commitment to God
and when Samuel had been weaned she took him
to the temple and gave him
to Eli the priest. The scripture I am so
fond of is 1 Samuel 1:26-27 where Hannah gives her son to be the Lord’s
servant.
This
scripture is
particularly meaningful to me because when our son was born he had a
heart
murmur. For about eight to nine months he had to be checked regularly
to see if
the little hole in his heart was closing up.
If it hadn’t closed enough for the doctor’s
satisfaction he would have
had to undergone open heart surgery to correct the problem. I’m sure you can imagine all the thoughts
that went through our minds back then.
His little heart grew and the hole closed
enough for the doctors,
however to this day doctors can still hear the small hole. I knew of
the
scripture about Hannah’s prayer, but my own situation gave me a better
understanding
of her dedication to God’s will for her and for her son. I can tell you
that in
that time of my life I would have done anything to insure the health of
our
son. I don’t believe in making bargains
with God so instead I dedicated myself to raising our son for God. This
is
where my journey to be the best mom I could be began.
After all, Hannah was a great example of
unconditional love don’t you think? Think about how much it must have
hurt her
to leave her son there in the temple with Eli. Our children can
unintentionally
bring that same kind of hurt into our lives as well. Hannah was so in
tune to
God that she remembered every detail of her prayer. Some of us are not
into
details, but when it comes to parenting we should be aware that this
area of
our lives and our children’s lives has to become our primary focus.
Here is
where the “rubber meets the road” so to speak. I’m sure that when
Hannah left
her son with the priests she had a long conversation with him about
God’s will
in their life, and what that looked like.
She was acutely aware that he was a gift from
God. I’m also certain that
they must have spoken of God often, and how he would serve his heavenly
Father. So let’s look at our children’s
responsibilities as children of God.
In
Proverb’s
23:22 God instructs us to listen to our fathers and respect our mothers. A perfect way to teach children this
principle is to model it for them with our own parents. When viewed
from a “child’s
perspective” this is a powerful way to demonstrate Gods
commandments. When
was the last time you sat at your parent’s feet and asked for advice?
It can be
humbling for sure but it can also be very rewarding. Our parents have
more
wisdom that we give them credit for.
They have lived more, experienced more, and
survived more of life than
we have. Just look at how technology has
changed. Would you know how to fix a car
motor or change the brakes? Ladies, how about fixing dinner without the
help of
a microwave or prepackaged foods? Then there is the laundry. Now, what
have you
experienced in life that would benefit your children if they would only
ask? Proverbs 19:20 says, “Listen to
advice and
accept instruction, and in the end you will be wise.”
Believe me there will be days with your
children when you will be the smartest mommy or daddy in the world, and
then
there will be times when your children are teenagers, that you will the
dumbest
parents to walk the face of the earth.
However, to restore your egos before they are
shot all together, at some
point in a child’s life you will get somewhat more intelligent again.
Over
and over
again we are instructed in the Bible to take instruction from our
mothers and
fathers. Why do you suppose this is?
Could it be that God in His wisdom knew we would need to see with our
eyes,
hear with our ears, and feel with our hands, a tangible parent in order
to
believe completely in a God that we can’t touch? As
children we learn to ask for help from a
tangible parent, who shows us instruction as well as unconditional love. Modeling these things for our children while
teaching them that we receive the same help and love from God points
them to
Him. They can in return experience a
relationship with Him. Both Proverbs 1:8 and 19:20 instruct us to seek
parental
advice and ask for help. As parents and as children God is always here
for
us. He is just waiting for us to ask.
Our biggest weakness is thinking that we can handle life ourselves.
Hannah was
aware that she could not have a child without God’s help; she also knew
that
Samuel was truly a gift from God. Our children, though they may not
always feel
like it, are a gift from God. With that gift comes the responsibility
to raise
and nurture them in Christ’s love and grace. It’s something that
requires details.
A plan to help children see God in His glory
and realize He is their
Father as well as yours. In God’s eyes
we are all children of God; however, He has given us the privilege and
honor of
being their earthly parents who are responsible for their spiritual
growth. We
are to model for them God’s authority over us as we teach our children
to
respect ours over them.
This
week when
you look at your children check your pulse
and see how you’re
doing. Don’t be hard on yourself if there’s room for improvement. We
are all a
work in progress. Ask God for help, He’s there, just waiting to help
you be the
best parent you can be. Model, model,
model… they may be watching!
Kathi
Brixey
“Committed
to Parenting”
CHALLENGED
TO THE
CORE
P.O.
BOX 414
LAKE ARROWHEAD,
CA 92352-0414
For
more information on how to "Center On Real-life Effectiveness" please
visit our website at:
www.CHALLENGEDTOTHECORE.com
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