Believing Jesus is a challenge to the ego

Believing Jesus is a challenge to the ego

This morning I had the opportunity to spend some quality fellowship time with a new friend.  He and his wife are soon-to-be parents and we enjoyed a wonderful conversation about being a father and expectations of fatherhood.  I shared my apprehensions as my wife and I approached the birth of our first son (who is now going to be 14).  Would I be good enough?  Did I have the right skills?  Would I “screw” my kid up?   That we must remain steadfast and trust the Lord to reveal the wisdom you will need at the right time to raise a child.  I am certain as this friend becomes a father that he is well equipped to raise his first son.  Before we knew it 2 hours had passed.

I am reminded of Ephesians 6:4 (NKJV)

And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.

God has plans for every child of God.  Our role as parents is to educate and love our children (who are gifts from God) to listen for God’s word and His plan in their lives.  We need to give each child we have the opportunity to explore his/her own spiritual gifts so that they can take their place in the Body of Christ to do God’s will.

Proverbs 22:6 (NKJV) Instructs:

Train up a child in the way he should go,

And when he is old he will not depart from it.

As parents we want the best for our children.  We want them to have lives that are happy and fulfilled.  With as much as we would like to be the ones responsible for their successes we need to recognize that it is God’s plans that are at work in their lives.  And this can blow our ego.  We have to teach our children how to keep their focus on Jesus Christ.

Some would agree that there is so much confusion, frustration, anxiety, and emptiness in our homes today.  We see the outcomes of this confusion every day.  If you want to make sure that your children grow in health homes and space then realize that God requires fathers to be leaders in their homes (Charles Stanley, Man of God: Leading Your Family by Allowing God to Lead You).  It’s God’s design and try as we might, we cannot improve on His design.  Ego pop!  In thinking they can improve the design there are many people today who see the father as disposable.  The Lord made men and women equal in value but each has distinctly different roles. 

As fathers we need to reclaim and accept the call to be the leaders of our families.  As parents we need to believe and trust in the Lord that he will give us the wisdom to challenge and support our children as they grow and mature in life and in Him.  We need to allow our children the opportunities to reveal their purpose and meaning in Christ.