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Issue link: http://magazine.kcm.org/i/1537307
of the church. They are in the four walls of our homes. We must make sure to give our children and grandchildren what they need so they go the right direction in life. Our kids are growing up with so much competing information and so many ungodly belief systems fighting for their attention. This can come through social media, or friends who have been raised with different values or standards. It can be challenging for parents to hold the line. That's why Joshua's declaration is so powerful: "But as for me and my family, we will serve the LORD" (Joshua 24:15, NLT). It doesn't matter what our children's friends are doing or what their parents allow—in our house, "we will serve the LORD." That starts with teaching them to honor us. Ephesians 6:1-3 tells us how important this is: "Children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. 'Honor your father and mother.' This is the first commandment with a promise: If you honor your father and mother, 'things will go well for you, and you will have a long life on the earth'" (NLT). That word honor in the Greek is timaō. It means "to assign value or reflect personal esteem." When our children are young, obedience isn't an option. But when our children become adults, we can't control how they act. If we don't instill the principle of honor in them when they're young, they won't understand it when they're grown. Isaiah 54:13 says, "All your children shall be taught by the LORD, and great shall be the peace of your children" (New King James Version). What a great promise. Every good parent wants their children to have peace, and that peace begins when we instill in them an understanding of honor. Even those who are struggling with a child who is not mirroring these biblical principles can stand on the Word and declare, "My child shall be taught of the Lord and great shall be their peace." Teaching the Word We also need to teach our children other principles of the Word of God. I know this from personal experience. My dad taught me about sowing and reaping, and how to believe and use my faith. When I was 16, I asked him for a car. He said, "No." I was so disappointed. I really wanted that car. But something inside me knew he was right. I needed to sow a seed and believe for it. And that's what I did. Then my dad and I believed God for the harvest on that seed. Several weeks later God brought my dad a harvest and told him, That's not your harvest. You're just the vessel. I was able to buy a car. But the real treasure was seeing biblical principles in action. It was a defining moment for me, and I'm so thankful my father took me through the process of believing for something, sowing a seed for it, and standing until my harvest came. I also saw my father obey the Holy Spirit and become a vessel for God's will to be done. It was priceless. Building a Spiritual Legacy We can't force our children to love God, but we can expose them to the behaviors, environments and experiences that nurture their spiritual growth. That includes taking them to church. Something beautiful happens when our kids don't have to be made to go to church anymore. They want to go to church. It's an important part of them building a real relationship with Jesus Christ. I tell parents all the time, "No matter what's going on in your teenager's life, keep taking We want to cultivate our children's tastes so that they desire the things of God. We want them to develop a taste for going to church, reading their Bibles, declaring scriptures and praying. 1 0 : B V O V