Monday, December 13, 2010

A Few More Thoughts on Loving God

As I was taking a shower, I was thinking about yesterday's post and hoped no one took it like I think love is the answer to everything- that we don't have responsibilities of conduct or should never have war or confront an enemy. I also cannot emphasize enough how essential the Bible's wisdom is. But still, loving God is reading His word and loving people is confronting evil.

Even though I in saying this I am admitting that I do watch Glee on occasion (because I like the music numbers), here is a quote that is stuck in my head:
"With the exception of parents, nothing messes up a person like High School". Yikes! Glee thinks parents are worse than High School?

Even though I was raised as a Christian, I am burdened with things that don't add up. One of them is that there seems to be a contradiction with the verse, "train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." and the stats of how many young adults leave the church. Some may be quick to judge the individual that left, but that is not what the verse says. It was instructing the parent, not the child.

If I were to teach my children that they should wake up every morning and draw purple polka dots on their legs, eventually they would see how ridiculous that was and stop... for good!

I'm wondering if many young people are told the laws of the Bible without having the love for God. That really isn't "the way he should go", and he may see how ridiculous following a bunch of laws are and leave for good. Not because he is ignorant, but he sees through pointless religion. However, I don't think that the answer is turning your back on God, but the answer is turning your back on the laws and running toward God.

If this is true, parents can make a difference in how their children understand God by making Him real to them. For instance, praying for courage when she is scared, asking for the fruit of the spirit on a bad day, and praising God when something exciting happens. The power of the faith of a child is a beautiful thing to witness! And when they make their faith, that grows through their love for God, as a part of their everyday lives, it will be very hard to part from that. At least it is for me.

Having said that, I will be the last to throw stones at any parent. It is a hard job and even when you do things by the book, some will still leave. My children are still young and I would not want to write their future now and have egg on my face later! However, it is this very thing that drives me to find out what I can do to show them the joy a person can have just loving God.

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