Resolved: That My Children Will Be Resolute in Christ!

Like most people, I set certain goals or resolutions at the beginning of every new year. Whether they are obtainable or not is a different story. Yet, I subject myself to it in hopes of bettering areas of my life that I feel I am lacking or faulty. I set out to achieve these goals by implementing a action plan or strategy. I seek God in prayer and wisdom and courage. I tell others to help hold me accountable. A lot of thought and intentionality is put into the process. In the middle of this process a thought occurred to me. What about my children?

The bible says, "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart." Proverbs 22:6 I have never looked at this verse as a promise to salvation for my children. Nevertheless, there is hope offered to the parent who chooses to intentionally raise their child to honor God. They key word is intentional.

To "train up" anything is to implement a strategy to achieve a goal. A runner trains his body to perform competitively for a race he hopes to win. A debate coach trains his pupils in rhetoric and argumentation to persuade a judge to vote for his perspective. In both cases there is intentionality and implementation. I believe the same must be done for our children.

To train up a child is to intentionally and prayerfully apply the word of God to their lives. Which means the parent must be aware of the child's spiritual needs and flaws. This also means that the parent must do something about it.

Before the new year arrived, I spent some time praying for my children. I specifically asked God to help me identify areas in their attitude and character that needed to be addressed. After much prayer and meditation, I came up with a list of goals for the children. These are areas of their life that Stacy and I see that could be catastrophic in their faith if not dealt with now. I'm sure there are more that will come up and I know that all them will be neatly dealt with in a year. However, they will be addressed because we are being intentional.

I do not believe in "ad hock' parenting. The more proactive we can be in our children's lives, the less leeway the world has to own them. The world will own them, that is for sure. We must fight for them and strategically implement ways to secure their faith. To do anything less is not parenting. And of course, I say all of this in the belief of God's sovereign grace.

Below are the goals we have set for our children. We have pasted them up all over the house; in their bedroom, the bathroom, the kitchen, dinning room, etc. It is not to be a reminder of how bad they are, but to remind them of who they can be. It also allows us to remember what we have set out to do. Most new year resolutions are broken within two weeks. This is their eternity! This could be the year they sell out to King Jesus! How cool would that be! As their dad, I want to do everything humanly possible to encourage their faith.

Naomi's 2011 Goals

1. To be content in all things. (Philippians 4:11; 1 Timothy 6:8; Hebrews 13:5)

2. To let love cover many sins. (Proverbs 10:12; 1 Peter 4:8; Proverbs 29:22)

3. To walk in integrity. (Proverbs 10:9; Proverbs 28:18; Psalm 101:2)

4. To find her identity in Christ. (Romans 1:16; Philippians 1:20; Proverbs 31:30)

5. To trust in the Lord with all of her heart, soul, and strength. (Proverbs 3:5-6; Psalm 34:8; Matthew 22:37-39)

Ethan's 2011 Goals

1. To work as unto the glory of the Lord. (Proverbs 17:9; Proverbs 6:6-11; Proverbs 19:15)

2. To be slow to anger. (Proverbs 16:32; Proverbs 19:11; Proverbs 14:29)

3. To share generously. (Proverbs 11:24; Proverbs 3:9-10; 1 John 2:15-17)

4. To find his identity in Christ. (Romans 1:16; Philippians 1:20; 1 Peter 5:6)

5. To trust in the Lord with all of his heart, soul, and strength. (Proverbs 3:5-6; Psalm 34:8; Matthew 22:37-39)

We do have goals for Abbie and Abram. They are not as concrete as Naomi's and Ethan's. I have written them down in a journal and will reference it when needed. We have also set family goals. I will blog about them later.

You Have Eyes To See But Do Not See!

My wife and I have developed somewhat of a ritual on Wednesday nights. After we have our family alter time and the children are prayed over and put to bed, we set up the computer, grab a snack, and watch NCIS. I know we are breaking major protocol in the SBC by not being in church on hump day. Sorry. When we started attending our current church, they did not have Wednesday night services. Anyhow, that is not why I am blogging. I am blogging because of what I read pertaining to Cote de Pablo who plays Ziva David in NCIS.

In the January 2011 edition of "Prevention," a holistic magazine that focuses on healthy living, Cote de Pablo gives a short interview giving readers a glimpse into her life. In this interview, we catch her vision of the divine.

When de Pablo was 21, she lost her grandmother to cancer. In her grandmothers last hours, a distraught Pablo gave God an ultimatum. Either God take her grandmother in twenty minutes or she would never believe in him again. Her grandmother died ten minutes later. Cote de Pablo credits this experience to her belief in a God.

From this point, it is not hard for her to move into some form of mysticism. Though she does not label herself any particular religion, nevertheless by description she leans to Eastern mysticism. She practices open flow Vinyasa [breathed synchronized yoga] with a personal teacher. She believes that her soul is in need of purification and that in order to be purified she must be reincarnated several times. The interviewer even assumed she might be Buddhist. To this assumption she expelled an answer that sounded very familiar to me.

"I don't label myself as anything. I have a lot of friends who don't believe in God. They say to me, 'How can you believe in God?' 'I go, "How can you not believe in God? I have moments where I've seen the majestic beauty in nature and the overwhelming perfection of it."' (Kate Hahn pg 102)

When I read this I had to stop and reread it again. Of course the first thing that came to my mind was Romans 1:19-20. God makes himself known to his creation through his creation. When I look around and see the grander of the Rocky Mountains or the valor of the Niagara Falls, I cannot help but wonder who or what is behind it all. This is especially so when I examine the complexities of the human body or the mind blowing intricacy of DNA. To this effect, de Pablo and I are on the same page. Yet, maybe we are on different sides of the same coin.

By God's grace, I can see the reality behind the creation. The sun shines gloriously and obediently in the sky. It shines gloriously because there is nothing like it, obediently because it points me to the one who made it and holds it all together; namely Christ (Hebrews 1:1-4; John 1). On this side of truth I have understanding.

Cote de Pablo however, has eyes to see yet she does not see. She knows that this world is too complex and extraordinary to have just evolved. She knows that something greater than herself is out there, yet she is blind to who it is. The next couple of verses in Romans explain her current condition.

"For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things." (Romans 1:21-23)

In the last part of the article de Pablo acknowledges that there is a "very big God out there." And she is doing everything in her mind to acknowledge him. The problem is that her thinking is futile and her heart is darkened. Because her heart is darkened, so are her eyes. The light of the gospel of Jesus Christ has not enlightened her to see the truth she is seeking. Instead, she is exchanging the glory of God for the things of this world. This is the epitome of sin. Further on in Romans, condemnation is pronounced for those who continue in this state (Romans 3, 5, 6, 8).

It was interesting for me to experience this verse in this context. Typically I read the verse and imagine some half naked guy with a spear and an exotic head dressing dancing around a fire on the other side of the world. This time God has opened my eyes to see that people in my general circle think this way. (I'm not saying that Cote de Pablo and I hang out or anything. I'm just saying that she is someone I recognize and have somewhat of a connection too.) I've known this for some time. But I have not really let the reality of it sink in. It was more of an abstract thought. In this light, she has helped me see the kingdom of God more clearly. Ironic isn't it?

My hope for Cote de Pablo is that she will receive the gospel of Jesus Christ. I was once no different than she. I was blind and lost. I wondered from one so called truth to the next. It was not until the Father seized my heart and poured out his love on me. Once I tasted the sweetness of His grace, there was no other fountain I wanted to drink. It was this drink that healed my heart and therefore healed my eyes.

My Heart Is Firm...Trustin In The Lord

It is no secret that when a family decides to go to seminary, that God uses life to teach you as much about ministry as the classroom. This last year God has allowed the bank account to drizzle away. He has allowed the unexpected to show up. He has not spared our bodies from affliction. Our faith has been challenged and tested with fire. Though the valley is deep and the road is long, God has shown himself faithful to us. We have been in the wilderness. Our souls are in a dry and thirsty state. Last Tuesday, God opened our mouths and gave us much to drink.

In order to get to Tuesday, we must first start with Sunday. Sunday was a fairly normal day in our house. Except for the fact that I got up to late and was hurried to get Naomi, Ethan, and myself out of the house and to the church for worship practice. It was our first Sunday as a new church. Grace Church of Louisville, a three year old church plant, merged with Franklin Baptist Church, a 100 year old community church. The service was great. Both Mark and Dr. Pennington gave insightful sermonettes. The congregation was filled with testimony of God's goodness and faithfulness over the years.

When we came home, we talked a lot about our circumstances and God's faithfulness. We talked about our lack of money for school, both seminary and home school. We also talked about a lack of clear direction of where God wants us in ministry.

That night, at dinner time, Stacy had a pen and a note card and asked us to list some things we need to pray for. We listed several things, one of them being money for home school curriculum. Stacy asked Naomi to specifically pray for $400.00 for curriculum and supplies. After we were done praying I asked for the kids to say what they are thankful for. Ethan said, " I am thankful for the money God is going to provide." I told him he had good theology.

Now comes Tuesday. It is almost 1pm. I was able to take an hour swim after working at Life Way in the morning. I'm on my way out to meet Alex to take him to work. As I walk through the hallway in the Honeycut Center, I call my wife to see how she is doing. She picks up says the usual. The kids are in chaos and the morning went quick. However, this time their is a particular calm in her voice.

She tells me, " You received a special letter today." I replied, "Oh ya, from who?" "It's a secret. They did not sign their name." she said. Of course, I was curious so I asked her to read it to me. She was hesitant at first. Maybe because she wanted me to experience the same element of surprise as she did. My curiosity got the best of me and I was eager to hear the letter. So she read it...

Brother,

I know how hard it can be to provide for your family while you are in school. I also

know that you have a large, growing family, and I felt led to share with you out of the

abundance the Lord has granted me. Please except this as the Lord's provision for your

needs, and always trust that He will take care of you no matter how difficult the season

or circumstance. Trust in the Lord with all of your heart, and lean not on your own

understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6). In all your ways, acknowledge Him, and he will make

your paths straight. I love you brother, and I will be praying for you and your family.

Your Friend

Stacy's voice began to break at the beginning of the scripture. By time she finished the letter she was crying and I was holding back. The letter was encouraging on its own. The five $100.00 bills enclosed sent a jolt through my soul; much like a knife or a scalpel. By this time I am standing in front of Alex and his mother. It is hard to not let on the emotions I am felling inside. Part of me wants to erupt in praise to God for His faithfulness. Another part of me just wanted to cry.

That night at dinner time, I shared with the kids what the Lord had done. I spent the better part of fifteen minutes trying to convey what exactly God had done. In the end I asked Naomi if she understood. She said yes. So I asked her, "We prayed for money for school curriculum. We asked for $400.00. God gave us $500.00. Why? She said, "God gave us more than we needed." And then I asked, "We prayed for this on Monday. This letter was sent before then. What do you think? "God knew ahead of time what we needed and provided for us." she said. I cannot convey how proud I was of her and thankful to god that he gave her eyes to see and ears to hear.

The truly wonderful element of all of this is the means at which God uses to ensure we know this is His doing. Proverbs 3:5-6 has been the verse on my heart for the last several weeks. There are times when panic comes over me, sometimes at odd times like when I am in the pool swimming. This verse has been my life vest. Sometimes the weight of life keeps me from enjoying rest at night. This verse has been my sedative. There are times when despair darkens my soul and clouds my eyes from seeing King Jesus. This verse has been my sun shower. There are times when unbelief gains ground in the battle. This verse has been my faith. Psalm 112:1,6-7 says " Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commandments...For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered forever. He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting the Lord." How true is the word of God.

I am so thankful to God for his faithfulness. I am also thankful for the church. Stacy and I have enjoyed the blessing of giving money to others. Now we are the ones receiving with joy. God moved one of His children to bless another. That saint obeyed and gave graciously with no recognition. I may never know who gave the money, but I do know I look forward to hearing the story in heaven.