Preparation is Needed - Chapter 8

Us mothers are the first teachers of our children and the opportunity given to us is to mold their character for good or evil. Yes the task of parenting may overwhelm us, and it has every reason to if we keep God out of the picture. 'At times the heart may be ready to faint; but a living sense of the dangers threatening the present and future happiness of their loved ones should lead Christian parents to seek more earnestly for help from the source of strength and wisdom. it should make them more circumspect, more decided, more calm yet firm, while they watch for these souls, as they must give account.' CG 64. What can make our task easier is PRAYER, STUDY OF THE BIBLE and EARNEST ZEAL.
 
A very interesting part of the study this week was about the preparation needed before we have a child or care for one:

• Laws of health and physical development
• Physiology
• Hygiene
• Prenatal Influences
• Laws of heredity
• Sanitation
• Dress
• Exercise
• Treatment of Disease
• Functions of organs and how they relate and depend on one another and the healthy action of each

"To assume the responsibilities of parenthood without such preparation is a sin." CG 64
Wow - this is very strong and very important! When I first read this I was little taken back and overwhelmed at the thought. It is a university degree in itself. But we are so privileged to have the Bible and SOP as our reference guide on so many points, and we are also blessed to live in a day and age where literature is so ready available to us and for free. Your local library or Internet is full of information - we are living in the information age that is true. So do not be overwhelmed, take each subject of study at a time, and make it a double blessing and teach it to your children and you learn it yourself.

Our lifework should be to understand the will of God so that we can train our children in the right way so that it might be approved by God. The Bible should be our rule of life - it is full of instruction. The Bible also gives us instruction in terms of obedience. 'Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord.' Col 3:20 So the question to be asked is - Should Gods rules of guidance be strictly obeyed? Should our children strictly obey our requirements? The answer is YES! In no way are we to indulge the child to a point where they feel that they can follow their own desires without consulting with the parents. All that is done in the home should be done in Gods perfect order. In home we expect our boys to ask before they go anywhere even if it's outside, and yes as soon as they could communicate. If we want our children in their teenage years to talk to us and communicate with us about their desires, we need to instill that at an early age.

Another point which really hit home for me was that if we see that our children are 'untaught, unmanaged and unrestrained' it concludes to the fact that WE are not spending enough time in the Word and thus we are not meeting Gods standard because we are not searching the scriptures to know what Gods standard is. The rule of our life must be 'What saith the scriptures?' and to know what the scriptures say we must spend time in it. I personally have found a real blessing in having my own quiet time with the Lord in the early hours of the morning before my children awake. Yes, this can be difficult depending on the age of your children and when I had infants I did not follow that practise but I found the time to read throughout the day, but as soon as they were sleeping through the night then I was able to regain that special time in the morning with our Lord. I would encourage you start your own quiet time. It may be difficult at first, but the Lord will help you through as it is His desire so spend time with you.

Because we are mothers and our calling is so great, we need to spend time with God to be able to develop a "well balanced mind and pure character. Reflecting only the true, good and beautiful." CG 67 The reason why it is so important that our characters are reflecting Christs, is because it will be copied by our children. We need to show love to our family in 'gentle words and courteous deportment' for this will bring sunshine to our homes which will then reflect on others. Through submission to the will of God we will then be fitted to be the teachers God desires us to be to our children.

 You may look back over the months and years of your child training and fall into despair because you feel that you begun all the training wrong. But DO NOT DESPAIR! Be soundly converted to God, obey the Word of God and have true reformation of your practises. God is ever willing to help and give you the Righteousness of Christ. A beautiful practise to begin each year with is to look back over the past year and ask the Lord for 'spiritual discernment to discover the defects in the work of the past'. repent of your neglected work in the home and  make this your motto for every day:

"This is your day of trust, your day of responsibility and opportunity. Soon will come your day of reckoning. take up your work with earnest prayer and faithful endeavour." CG 69

Please find the next study guide here