Proverbs 22:6 l “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

As an adult we find more and more that we return to the ways of our upbringing. Yes, many of us left the nest and tried life on our own for a time but in the end we realized that our parents raised us to have morals and taught us to guide our way through life according to God’s word. Thankfully many of us remembered being taught right and returned to what we were taught. There is no greater job than to raise up our children in the right way. There is no guarantee that a child will grow up and make all of the right choices but having the deep seeded teachings of what is right gives them a foundation to return to if they fall and have to rebuild. So many children today may not have parents who teach them right or are good examples so we as society need to take it upon ourselves to help those precious children learn the tools necessary to become responsible and good adults. 

So many in our society can help those children as a teacher, a community leader, a pastor, Sunday school teacher, youth leader, fireman, police officer, boys/girls club leader, etc. The children of this world is our future so please remember that when you have the opportunity to teach them a tool to help them find success in life. Success is measured in many ways but, nothing makes us feel more successful then to feel as though we have honored God in our words and actions and that He is well pleased with us. “Jesus loves the little children, all the children of the world.........” Mark 10:14-15. 

Parents sometimes lose sight of this when raising their children. Why is raising our children according to God’s word so important? What is true sacrificial love of a parent? I think we can learn this from a mother from the pages of history, God’s word, The Bible. Her name was Jochebed. Exodus 2:1-25. She was the mother of Moses. Jochebed was a godly mother. In the bible we can see where all three of her children were raised according to God's word. Aaron, Miriam and her son Moses. Even though Moses was given as a child to Pharaoh's daughter he was still raised and sacrificed by Jochebed according to God and with great love as his mother she sacrificed to save him. We can grasp from the scriptures how Jochebed taught her children, prayed with her children, led them according to God's word, showed them to rely on God in all things, taught them right from wrong and respect for others and the true values of life.

When she gave birth to a son in a time that was very dangerous when the King of Egypt was about to take action that would put this child in grave danger, we can see that she relied on God for answers, on God for strength, and on God for wisdom. Oh how she loved this child and oh how she feared for his life. The King of Egypt had ordered the death of Hebrew babies born who were boys. Can you imagine the turmoil her thoughts must have been in? The anguish of a knock at their door and the scurrying about to try and keep a small child hidden. Children are not silent creatures so you know how her heart must have jumped when he would cry. Jochebed showed godly sacrificial love for her child. She tried to protect him and managed to keep him hidden for three months.

It is no doubt that many thoughts crossed the mind of Jochebed at this time. The welfare of her son was surely at the forethought in her mind. Many of us love our children but it is incredible love when we can give that child up in order to save their life. A tough concept for most of us and you know how hard it must have been for her. This also reflects to us how difficult it was for God to give His son Jesus to die on the cross to provide a way to salvation for all mankind. Jochebed didn't know what was going to happen to her infant son Moses, she prayed and followed God's wisdom and trusted him. She did everything she could to ensure the safety of her son. She made a comfortable basket to keep him afloat in the waters and to keep him dry. She must have felt such sadness when she kissed him for what she thought could be the last time and placed him in that basket and closed the lid and gently pushed him down the river. We may wonder why she put for her daughter Miriam to the task of watching and following the basket which held this baby. We can assume that partly because Jochebed needed to make sure the baby was safe but perhaps she also couldn't bare to watch herself. She put her trust in God and let Miriam watch over the child and report back to her. Most of us know the rest of the story but in today's world, what is sacrificial love?

Some parents feel that sacrificing is us doing without to give to our children. Well if that means you only have a little food and you choose to feed them before yourselves or only enough money to buy clothes for them, then perhaps that is sacrificial love. However it is not sacrificial love to not set proper examples for our children. What is meant by this. Well consider the following. Do we let our children demand expensive things that we cannot afford? Do we then work two jobs or many overtime hours to give them what they want rather then teach them the responsibility of money and to be thankful for what they have? Do we feel they have to have those expensive jeans, the fiery red sports car? Are we instead sacrificing time with our children to fulfill their wishes and not their needs. Do we think we are a terrible parent if our children want these things but we can't provide? Do we have family arguments about finances because we think our child has to go to the best schools, wear the best clothes, drive the best cars, and have the best of everything? Do we honestly believe that this is helping our children and giving them the proper structure for life? Or is it instilling selfishness into their hearts.

Sacrificial love really means to guide them to God, teach them to appreciate the love of God. Teach them to appreciate the things and ways of God. Teach them respect and patience. Teach them that life isn't going to be handed to them, they must be responsible, build a life of their own and work to get what they need. This is the only way that our children will have the tools necessary to be a true success in life and a true selfless parent to their own children. We must be selfless in our love to our children so they then will be selfless in their love for their children. Love is not based on material things we can give a child but in the care we give to them, the wisdom we instill in their lives and the righteousness we guide them to. Raise our children according to God's word. Jochebed did this and Moses even when raised as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter he grew up to be a Godly man in history. Jochebed had no idea what would become of Moses when she made her decision but she trusted God and put her child's welfare above everything and he ended up protected by God. 

It is hard to not want to give our children the best but give them the best by giving them the word of God. That is the first step to their happiness. Give them the true values that will sustain them in life. Protect them from the world, from the unselfishness and guide them toward being a righteous person and we then will be giving them all the riches of God's promises for those who trust in him. Like Jochebed we fear for our child's future, their life and their safety but we must do like she did and run to God for His guidance and provide the safest place we can provide for our child to dwell. Teach them while they are under our care to be good, honest, selfless, faithful and trusting in God. Then when we have done all we can to protect them we must push them gently into the waters of life. They will be able to swim if we have given them the tools necessary.