Proverbs 22:6 (NLT)
“Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.”
We live in a culture that embraces youth, but where would society be without the wisdom and grace that maturity yields. We earn our gray hairs, and mothers know this better than anyone else. Raising children in these modern times is no joke. As mothers who love God, we understand that being a mother is one of the most precious ministries on earth, and it requires us to be diligent in ways we never imagined.
God tells us in Colossians 2:8(NLT), “Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ.” We must be on constant watch for this, trying to protect the minds and hearts of our children so they will not be stolen from the faith. Mothers stand guard in many ways and helping our children to know and love God through Jesus Christ is the most important gift we can give them.
In a home where mothers are single parents, the need to work and to also balance parenthood can be challenging. There are instances where some children are raising themselves. Their primary teachers are social media, video games, and television shows. Mother’s may feel their influence diminishing as our kids become increasingly captivated by worldly distractions. We want them to go in the direction of God’s destiny for their lives, but sometimes they resist this, and we are left feeling powerless. The reality is that through Christ we are not powerless. We have the Holy Spirit inside us, and we must walk in the Spirit and lean on his guidance so that our children are influenced by his power working through us.
Let God lead
Psalm 37:23(NLT) says, “The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.” We can’t be everything to our children. Only God can be that for them. Our Heavenly Father wants to be heavily involved in our children’s lives, and His greatest access to them is through us. As we instruct and teach them, they should be confident that we are hearing from God because His authority can’t be corrupted. His Word is true, and as we use our opportunities to model Godliness before them, they will see our commitment to the Father, and the witness of it will make an indelible mark on their hearts.
Colossians 3:17(NLT) tells us, “And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.” This is God’s standard, but sometimes, we make mistakes, and our actions are far from this. Our kids see us behaving in a way that is contrary to the witness of Christ. They see us doing things that have no place in the conduct of someone that truly loves God and is committed to walk by His love. Our mistakes can teach them if we are transparent about God’s standard and our failure to uphold it. The one thing we can never do is lead them to believe that following God leads to mistakes, because that could never be true.
In our mothering, we must let our Heavenly Father lead us down the right path, and our children will inevitably follow as Proverbs 22:6 says. We must also be aware that even when we do our best as mothers, our kids can still do things that are shockingly out of character from who we believe them to be. We have an enemy, the devil, and he is always trying to find vulnerabilities that allow him to sneak in and cause trouble, but we must remember the Words of Jesus Christ in 1John 4:4(NLT), “the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world.” As parents, we must be led by the Holy Spirit in all things. He will help us keep our children on the right path as we remain committed to stay on it ourselves. ■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“Children on the Right Path”, written by Kim Times, edited by Fran Mack and KLizzie for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2024. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.