The Shepherd Press Blog

Protected From the Heart

How can a young man keep his way pure?
  By living according to your word.

I seek you with all my heart;
  do not let me stray from your commands.

I have hidden your word in my heart
  that I might not sin against you. Psalm 119:9-11

Our children need to be protected by God’s word when they sleep. We know this, at least in part, because Scripture promises it will offer protection while one is sleeping. By implication, those who do not seek the protection the Scriptures offer are vulnerable to spiritual attack during sleep. The question at the end of the last post was How do children acquire this protection? The verses above, from Psalm 119, are a good place to start.

Protected Sleep

When you walk, they will guide you;

when you sleep, they will watch over you;

when you awake, they will speak to you. Proverbs 6:22

On average we spend 1/3 of our lives sleeping. Sleep refreshes our bodies. A good friend of mine, a pediatrician, tells me that when we sleep our metabolism slows down so the maintenance functions of the body can be accomplished. Cell and tissue repair occur during this down time, rather than when the body is active and needing energy to do other things. Sleep is an amazing component of God’s creation of man. It is a daily reminder of our finiteness as creatures. God, our Creator, has no need of sleep and thus is able to constantly care for his people.

Communicating the Gospel, God’s Goodness to your Teenagers

The wise in heart are called discerning,
  and pleasant words promote instruction. Proverbs 16:21

If the wisdom of God has entered your heart then you can say that God has been good to you. This pleasantness of heart should result in pleasant words from your mouth. What do I mean by pleasant words? I’m not talking about careful, manipulative words that play polite “control” games with others. No, pleasant words should illustrate the genuine joy and pleasure that results from experiencing the power of the Gospel in your life. You and I deserve the torment of hell, but through gospel grace we receive the wonderful mercy of God. This reality must be translated into the language that you speak to your children.  God may use any number of different ways to bring your children to Christ. But the one way that must not be ignored is the words that you use to talk to your children. The thread that begins with the goodness of God that brings pleasant, intimate knowledge of him to your soul must extend to the very words that you use to give direction and counsel to your children.

 

Raising Davids

Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God? I Samuel 17:26

Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. 37 The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine." I Samuel 17:36-37

It is possible that after these last few posts some of you may be thinking that I have a problem with the news media. Actually, my purpose is to encourage families to recognize God for who he is and raise their children accordingly. Christians must care deeply about the reputation of God—the glory of God—and how we add or detract from that reputation in our daily lives. (See Ezek. 36:16-36.) On the one hand, God is certainly not in need of our recognition. On the other hand, you and your children were designed by God to live for his glory and bring honor to his name. That is what it means to have a Godward orientation (chapter 3 of Shepherding a Child’s Heart). So my focus is not primarily on the news media, but upon parents giving their children a vision for adding to the reputation of God.

David, Josiah and Mary

20 My son, keep your father's commands
       and do not forsake your mother's teaching.

21 Bind them upon your heart forever;
       fasten them around your neck.

22 When you walk, they will guide you;
       when you sleep, they will watch over you;
       when you awake, they will speak to you.

23 For these commands are a lamp,
       this teaching is a light,
       and the corrections of discipline
       are the way to life,

24 keeping you from the immoral woman,
       from the smooth tongue of the wayward wife.

As we finish this series of posts on Proverbs 6, I want to focus again on verse 22. In the last post I linked to the Rebelution website authored by Alex and Brett Harris, two teenagers who demonstrate the active presence of the Word that verse 22 talks about. They have written a book, titled Do Hard Things; Tim Challies has written a review of the book. This book is helpful for both teenagers and parents.  The Harris brothers are convinced that the expectations we have for what teenagers can accomplish is too low. The negative consequence of setting low expectations is low performance. In other words, if you don’t expect much, you won’t get much. I agree.

 

Do Hard Things

22 When you walk, they will guide you;
       when you sleep, they will watch over you;
       when you awake, they will speak to you.

23 For these commands are a lamp,
       this teaching is a light,
       and the corrections of discipline
       are the way to life… Proverbs 6:22&23

These verses envision a dynamic relationship between the word of God and young people. God’s truth should resonate in the lives of teenagers. The word is living and active. One example of what this could look like in today’s youth is displayed in the lives of Alex and Brett Harris. They are the authors of the website and blog The Rebelution. It is encouraging to see teenagers motivated to do hard things for the glory of God. What Alex and Brett have done shows that teenagers can make a difference. Why not take a look at what they have accomplished?

Protection

20 My son, keep your father's commands
       and do not forsake your mother's teaching.

21 Bind them upon your heart forever;
       fasten them around your neck.

22 When you walk, they will guide you;
       when you sleep, they will watch over you;
       when you awake, they will speak to you.

23 For these commands are a lamp,
       this teaching is a light,
       and the corrections of discipline
       are the way to life,

24 keeping you from the immoral woman,
       from the smooth tongue of the wayward wife.  Proverbs 6:20-24

The last post focused on the danger of communication breakdowns between parents and their teenagers. When communication with parents fails, teenagers lose a significant weapon in their battle with the world. The words underlined in the text above could all be translated guard according to Waltke’s commentary. Notice that the initiative here is with the child. The father is urging that his son follow his direction. But the protection will come as the son actively participates in guarding his heart. This is the same sense as Proverbs 4:23 where the son is told, “Above all else guard your heart.” The connection with the instruction given to younger children must not be missed.

 

From Young Children to Teenagers

20 My son, keep your father's commands
       and do not forsake your mother's teaching.

21 Bind them upon your heart forever;
       fasten them around your neck.

22 When you walk, they will guide you;
       when you sleep, they will watch over you;
       when you awake, they will speak to you.

We will be looking at Proverbs 6:20-24 in the next few posts. In this post we will look particularly at verse 22. This verse talks about the intimate activity of the Word being in the hearts of our children. This is another way to state the truth of Psalm 119:11:  I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. This verse is the best summary I know of the goal of biblical childrearing. It ties closely with Paul’s call in Colossians 3:16 to have the word of Christ dwelling richly within.

 

Young Children, Teenagers & the National Day of Silence.

20 My son, keep your father's commands
       and do not forsake your mother's teaching.

21 Bind them upon your heart forever;
       fasten them around your neck.

22 When you walk, they will guide you;
       when you sleep, they will watch over you;
       when you awake, they will speak to you.

23 For these commands are a lamp,
       this teaching is a light,
       and the corrections of discipline
       are the way to life,

24 keeping you from the immoral woman,
       from the smooth tongue of the wayward wife.

In the last post we talked about the upcoming National Day of Silence. This event is sponsored by the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Educational Network (GLSEN). You can check out the last post for details. In short this group is targeting middle and high schools across the United States in an effort to increase tolerance for those who have unbiblical sexual practices and  desires. These topics are difficult to talk to adults about, let alone middle school age children. Yet this is exactly what parents, church leaders and teachers must do if we are to prepare our children for the world they will enter.

 

 

A Question re: The National Day of Silence

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? II Corinthians 6:14

Caleb Land posted this comment with regard to a question that he had that had not been directly addressed in the blog. Thank you, Caleb, for posting this question! I also encourage others of you to comment about issues that have not been directly addressed in the blog, but that you would like to see addressed.