Thursday, April 03, 2008

Rejoicing Parents

Continuing my presentation to the youth, I continued on from having looked at some of the reasons to obey parents to some practical goals for youth with respect to their parents. More correctly, I suggested one goal: instead of seeking to merely obey their parents, perhaps they might think about how to delight their parents.

Proverbs 23:25 - "May your father and mother be glad; may she who gave you birth rejoice!"

But how? How do we bring gladness and joy to our parents. In addition to obedience, it seems that a life lived in wisdom and righteousness will bring joy to any parent.

Proverbs 10:1 - "A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son grief to his mother."

Proverbs 23:24 - "The father of a righteous man has great joy; he who has a wise son delights in him."

The young people responded incredibly well to this challenge and we spent a good time discussing ways in which to bless our parents, particularly as it related to growing in holiness, righteousness, and wisdom. As I have written before, many of the children live in very awkward circumstances, but (or perhaps, because of this) they have a genuine hunger for the truth of the Bible and an encouraging responsiveness when it is presented to them.

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