Biblical Childrearing

1 Kings 2:3 And keep the charge of the LORD your God: to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, His commandments, His judgments, and His testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn;

Anyone who has spent any amount of time studying the Bible for biblical childrearing principles has read Proverbs 22:6 "Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it." I have made a decision to do my best to take heed to this Scripture. Being the parent of going-on-five children, it is really good advice (as all of Scripture is.) Because of my conscious decision to dedicate each of my children to the Lord, and to follow this instruction to the best of my abilities, I am constantly looking for Scripture to share with my children.

This morning, when readying myself for my morning Bible study, I prayed to the Lord that He would direct me to Scripture that was relevant to me today. 1 Kings 2:3 was what He gave me. The fact that this instruction was given from a father to a son, was not lost to me. When you add that these instructions were given to King Solomon, by his father, King David, makes it all the more compelling to me.

My point in sharing this is to show that when we need instruction for anything in life, we can always pray for guidance. The Lord will never let us down, if we truly seek what He offers.

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 1 James 1:5 NKJV

I pray you are blessed today and every day, my friends.

Forgiveness Part 2 by Shalene

I received a request yesterday by an Anonymous commenter on my article Turning the Other Cheek and Forgiveness:

Anonymous said... The article is from the perspective (predominantly) of 'past transgressions'.... It is Very difficult continuing to forgive, when an onslaught of transgressions, including pathological lying, barrages each encounter.... Said mathematically, these are not Points in time, the transgressions continue. If they were water, they would not be an isolated pool, they would be a river! :) It is true that Jesus suffered.... but he Knew that the end would occur... and at this moment, he can look back on it, as others can.... Please comment on the continuing transgressions and How To Handle Them on a daily basis.

So I am going to attempt to address this comment here today. First, let's address when it's OK not to forgive. In what circumstances are we allowed to say, "Enough is Enough. I cannot forgive anymore"?

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." Matthew 6:14-15 NKJV

Then Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven." Matthew 18:21-22 NKJV (see also remainder of chapter for parable of the king and his stewards)

We can clearly see from these two Scriptures (both of which are Jesus' words) that there is no point at which we can say "I do NOT forgive." For as we forgive, so shall He. It does not matter how many times, or how continuously someone sins against us, or hurts us. I do know how difficult it is to forgive grievous wrongs done to you. I have forgiven many things done to me that most would not forgive. And many would agree that I would be justified, had I not been able to forgive. However, that is not what God's Word teaches us. Being a Christ follower means to live as Christ did. Forgiving ALL. Those worthy AND unworthy of our forgiveness.

Now let me address the commenter directly. It was stated that "Jesus could see the end and look back on it." First of all, the end has not come yet. Secondly, we all STILL sin against Him. The end will not come until He returns and stomps out sin once and for all. We ALL still sin against Him continuously, as in "a river, not an isolated pool." How to deal with it? That is not an easy question to answer, as I do not know your exact situation. I am not a professional counselor, nor even a professional minister, however, I will attempt to help you in this issue, based on my limited knowledge from your comments, and my extensive knowledge of the human psyche. (I've been in enough counseling, that I could be one, I suppose.) :)

Let's take pathological lying first. Pathological lying is much like an addiction and is in fact considered by some to be one. And must be addressed in the same manner. There are many roots behind the possible reasons for the person committing this offense. Please see Wikipedia's definition. And for my second point, more often than not, a person is not a pathological liar, but a compulsive one. This is often the result of childhood issues. In which a person developed the habit as a child, and does not even think to tell the truth- even when it doesn't matter. Please see this article as well.

I cannot give you any advice about your situation, as I don't know the details, and therefore cannot begin to tell you what can be done about the situation. However, I can say this: When you are faced with continuous offenses, it is times like these when your attention must be focused on love. Unconditional Love. The only way you can keep your focus on unconditionally loving a person, is to focus on the One that is the only one truly able to do so. God. Pray for forgiveness, pray over the circumstances, and get counseling for yourself, and the offender if possible. There are just some things that don't work themselves out. And remember this: there is a Divine Plan for all that you go through, and it may be that God is working on you (or the person doing the offending) in this situation. Everything works for the good of those that love Him. Remember too, that forgiving a person does not make their actions OK. It just means that you continue to love them regardless.

I pray this article has helped all those that suffer from continued transgressions, and if I can be of any more help, please feel free to contact me at info@prv31woman.org I will keep all information completely confidential.

--Lord, today I pray for a forgiving heart for all of us. I pray that you give us a Spirit of forgiveness, as You have each and every day. I pray that any unforgiveness in my heart, and the hearts of my readers would be brought to light, and that Your Divine Counsel, would help in these situations. You alone, Lord, know our hearts and our motivations, and You alone, Lord can change them. I pray these things in Jesus' Holy Name. Amen.

Don't Worry Be Happy by Shalene

Most of you probably remember the song by Bobby McFerrin- "Dont' Worry Be Happy" from the late 80's (am I showing my age here?) And in it, he doesn't give us any Scriptural basis for this, per se. But did you know that there is a Scriptural basis for these words?

I was recently ministering to a friend of mine who was worried about some health issues she is having and I asked her if she would like me to share some scriptures with her that she could meditate on, while she was awaiting the results of some tests she had done. This is what I shared with her.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God Philippians 4:6 NKJV

Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body.......... Matthew 6:25 NKJV

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day [is] its own trouble. Matthew 6:34 NKJV

Does worry bog you down? Do you become anxious, allowing the deceiver to speak lies into your life? Do you forget that God has a divine plan for you, and that nothing outside of His plan will come to pass? Do you forget that God gives us strength to overcome any trial or tribulation that He does allow into our lives?

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. James 1:2-6 NKJV

So what do you do with the worries and cares of the day? I am aware that it's not easy to just not worry. It's so much easier said than done. Therefore, I submit these additional verses for you to meditate on.

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you 1 Peter 5:6-7 NKJV

Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God Psalm 42:5 NKJV

--Lord, today I pray for the worries of the world. That I might be free of my worries, though they are blessedly few. I pray for the readers of these words, that they might know the freedom from worry that You alone can give. Blessed is he that trusts in You. I pray these things in Jesus' Holy Name. Amen.

And for your listening pleasure: Bobby McFerrin's "Don't Worry Be Happy"


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