IN HIS GRIP: DO NOT FORGET

She’s the prettiest little thing I’ve ever seen!

Last November 9, 2011, I officially became an aunt. My brother’s first baby, Sophia Gabrielle, was born! And I’ve never been this thrilled to have a niece! She has this thick black hair and perfect lips. She looks like my brother, only with a couple of “improvements” (I’m his sister so I have an exclusive right to embarrass my brother) – baby Sophie has lighter skin and she has dimples!

It was, for me, a wonderful sort-of yearend gift from God to our family. I’m just so glad to see how happy my brother was when we visited them in the hospital. There’s just this pride and joy that shone in his eyes. And knowing how hard my brother could be especially when angry, it was kind of funny and touching to see him get all mushy and say possessively, “Ang ganda ng baby ko (my baby is so pretty)”

Amidst the joy and celebration, having a new member of our family also made me think of our responsibility as Christian adults. Would all our future children grow up with a genuine love and fear of God? Would they grow up obedient to the commands of the Lord?

This made me recall the kings of Israel and Judah in 2 Chronicles: the good king, who obeyed the Lord during their reign; and the bad kings, who did evil and worshipped idols. One thing I saw is that the next king usually followed the footsteps of their fathers. Let’s look at several excerpts:

2 Chronicles 17:3, “The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because in his early years he walked in the ways of his father David had followed.”

2 Chronicles 22:3-4, “He (Ahaziah) too walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother encouraged him in doing wrong. He did evil in the eyes of the Lord…”

2 Chronicles 27:2, “He (Jotham) did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Uzziah had done… (v. 6) Jotham grew powerful because he walked steadfastly before the Lord his God.”

2 Chronicles 33:22, “He (Amon) did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as his father Manasseh had done. Amon worshipped and offered sacrifices to the idols Manasseh had made.”

These verses show how crucial the roles of parents are. It seems like the children usually become what their parents had become to them. The young heir, whose parents lived righteous lives and taught him the laws of God, usually reigned as a king who remained faithful and obedient to the Lord. He even recognized the opportunities to rectify where his parents might have been neglectful in their walk with God.

But then with parents who did what was detestable in the eyes of God, their heir usually did worse evil than their parents had done.

I remember one of my teachers comparing a child to an empty cup. It would be role of the people around him to fill that cup with the values that would serve as a foundation of the child’s character. Wouldn’t that foundation be unshakable if the child’s family would fill his cup with their Christian faith? Wouldn’t it be better if our children would grow up knowing how much God loves them and how faithful God is? Wouldn’t it be nicer if they grow up knowing that they could put their trust in the Lord? That they would grow up knowing how to talk to God through prayer and how important having a quiet time with the Lord is?

While they are young, let our children witness our faith. Let them see us open our Bibles and spend our quiet time with the Lord. Let them hear us pray. Let our children see our love and obedience to God. Let us share our testimonies with them.

As this year ends, my prayer is that God would continue to become the Core of our family, that our family will always choose to love, serve, and obey Him. I pray that we would not neglect to teach our children the Word of God, and to present our testimonies, so that their faith would become as firm as a rock as they grow up. And I hope that this will become the prayer of your family too.