In everything you do, put God first, and He will direct you and crown your efforts with success. – Proverbs 3:6 (TLB)
Carefree life, no tension about the future, living each day as it comes, exploring the unknown, and curious about the known, in one word, is – Childhood!
But is this what our children are living today?
Before they are fully awake in the morning they are bombarded with the schedule of the day if not that then of the morning rush. Just like us adults they have lost living each moment and just rush into the day, and we are the ones leading our children into living this lifestyle – all in the name of SUCCESS.
Our children are burdened with a load of getting good grades and being skillful in all activities. Whether or not they are gaining knowledge grades decides their success. They grow up acquiring just grades and nothing else thus making them adults without any vision. They are growing to become sheep without the ‘Shepherd.’ No aim yet living!
The Word of God endorses success and the Lord promises us success in life. But is this the success that God wants us to have that takes away the true essence of life?
Parents, you are losing focus.
In our pursuit to live up to the world’s standards of success, we are losing the purpose of why we were born. Success, according to the world is to achieve what you want and you strive to achieve it, you work towards it in your own strength.
Aren’t we passing on this to our children?
You can do it! God has gifted you with so many talents and you are wasting them! God has given you intelligence work hard and achieve your goal, don’t lose focus. These are the words we keep yelling at our children and at times push them beyond what they can do. And such ‘encouragement’ makes them believe that they are achieving what they want with what they have.
It is not our children’s fault when as teens they refuse to acknowledge God in their success as they were never taught their existence and sustenance are both from God alone.
“Yes, I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in me and I in him shall produce a large crop of fruit. For apart from Me you can’t do a thing. – John 15:5 (TLB)
Yes, parents, it is time we shift our focus from what our children are capable of doing to what our God can do with our children. We have to teach our children from a very young age that we are just branches bearing fruits that our Lord (the Vine) is producing.
The best way to teach our children to recognize the source of success is our attitude toward the success that we get. The way we respond to the material blessings that we receive from God. The way we handle our finances in the light of the Word of God. As they see our connection with the Vine they will also see the dependency on Him in everything that we do. In a way showing them without God, we cannot do a thing.
No Hard Work!
The world measures success with the accumulation of wealth that comes with a lot of hard work. Hard work at the cost of living the kingdom purpose life. So much so that our children don’t even know that they have a kingdom purpose in their life. They are taught to put in the effort as much as they can to attain success thus shifting their focus from their source to their own effort and ability.
So all effort and hard work is in vain?
All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty. – Proverbs 4:23
No, the Word of God encourages hard work. We have to put in our effort into all that we do and we ought to encourage our children to live a disciplined and hardworking life. But in all this, we must remind them to keep God first in everything they do. To work as unto God and not man or themselves. As they do so God will crown their effort with success. God will bless the work of their hands. Then will every effort be fruitful and multi-fold. And this effort will be tireless and not stressful.
You want examination days stress-free for you and your children. Keep God First!
