Ready or not, your child will do spiritual battle

by Barrett Vanlandingham

July 1, 2014

            Lately, I have spent a lot of time updating my family’s GPS units.  I recently gave one to my daughter for graduation with a lifetime of updates.

            There’s just something about coming to the reality that your child will be leaving the nest in a month and a half.  From a dad’s perspective, the least I could do is make sure her GPS maps are all up to date before she hits the road for her next journey.

            The same is true spiritually.  The only difference is that you don’t wait until the last minute to make sure your kids have the right directions programmed in to their brain.  It starts very early on.  In fact, the first time kids challenge their parents regarding spiritual matters, it usually catches parents off guard!  This forces the parent to make a decision they may not have thought much about, or maybe they just thought it would come natural.  Yes, some answers to questions come natural, but others can require significantly more brain power to deal with.  And even then, sometimes you’re not exactly sure if you made the right decision.

            I remember one time when my now 16-year-old son was about four years old, he asked me this question, “If God created everything, then who created God?”  Another question he asked was this, “Is God real in the same way that Santa is real?”  I thought to myself, “Wow! Parenting is going to be fun!  Ugh.”  The questions have only gotten tougher over the years.

            The Bible’s teachings have been a great source of comfort for me as a parent because God’s word is consistent in its teaching.  There is no topic not covered.  As time goes along, life presents opportunities to teach our children Bible based answers to life’s questions.  Yes, Bible class is important.  But if Sunday mornings and Wednesday nights are the only times children receive Biblical instruction, that is only about one-half of one-percent of their time per week. That is why it is important for parents to spend time reading the Bible on a regular basis, and then find practical ways to weave it into our children’s lives all day, every day (ref: Deut. 6) long before it is time for them to leave the house.  This way, your child will at know now and later where life’s best advice comes from.

            Just as we update our GPS units to keep up with changes to roads and highways, it is also necessary to update our children on a variety of topics that we may come across in life that might be spiritually helpful.  Your child may say, “O dad!” or “O mom, don’t worry!”  But on the inside, they will always know you have their best interests at heart as you help them stay alert to the devil’s schemes (1 Peter 5:8-9), and as you make sure your children stay prepared to do spiritual battle away from home.  Have a great week!

Membership in God’s Family is a Big Deal

(part 5 of 5 articles on "Family Life")
by Barrett Vanlandingham
June 24, 2014 

            In the final part of my five part series “Family Life” I want to talk about the most important family of all, God’s family.  Making sure you and your loved ones are part of it is the greatest decision you will ever make.

            In Matthew 12:46-50 someone in a crowd that Jesus was teaching told Him that Jesus’ family was waiting for Him outside.  But Jesus’ response to this was probably not what the crowd expected to hear.  He said, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?”  Pointing to his disciples he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”

            Wow! That must have been a shock, at least at first, for people to hear such a thing from such a respected teacher.  But I suspect there were no doubt many Aha moments as His words began to sink in.  Jesus was not disowning his earthly family.  He was simply making the point that even though our earthly families mean a great deal to each of us in this lifetime, Christians are part of God’s family which lasts into eternity!

            About a week ago, Lisa and I returned from our 25^th wedding anniversary trip to Florida and the Caribbean Sea.  We had never experienced anything like that!  The clear blue water and white sand beaches of the Bahamas, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel were amazing.  I can barely begin to describe to you the beauty of God’s creation we got to be a part of there.  I mentioned to Lisa that I think I may now have an idea of what the Garden of Eden was like.

            But as wonderful as that trip was, and as blessed as I feel to have such an amazing woman in my life, I feel even more blessed that she and I both are part of God’s family.  This means when Jesus returns to bring His faithful home, we will get to experience something much greater than a temporary relationship on God’s beautiful earth.  We will get to experience paradise in heaven for an eternity that far surpasses our imagination and certainly any of God’s created things here on earth!            We are doing our best to guide our children in this way, too.

            Children have no choice as to which earthly family they are born into.  In Old Covenant times before Jesus came to earth, children born into the nation of Israel were automatically God’s chosen people.  But in New Testament times, through Jesus, we have “the right to become children of God (John 1:12-13)”.  It is a choice to obey God’s will and let Him add you into His family of believers (Acts 2:47).   Will you choose Him today?  Have a blessed week!