Thought for Today
Deuteronomy 8:5 Know then in your heart that as a parent disciplines a child so the LORD your God disciplines you.
Exodus 20:5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me,
Luke 1:17 With the spirit and power of Elijah he will go before him, to turn the hearts of parents to their children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
Hebrews 12:7 Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children; for what child is there whom a parent does not discipline?
Our grandson came over for dinner last night. It is something we try to do whenever he is home from school and has the time. We always order online from a local restaurant and he picks up the food on his way over. We enjoyed a good meal and several hours of conversation on a broad range of topics. Just the 3 of us. I can only describe it as a wonderful evening.
This morning, however, I am thinking about how different parenting is today from what it was for my parents and for Greta and me in parenting our own children. The generation of my parents had to deal with WWII, rationing, the influx of all the returning servicemen . . . and the advent of television into everyday life. There were countless articles and books written about the potential dangers and the possible benefits of television.. The general consensus seemed to me to be that certainly television would be a great boon for education and advancement. Certainly it would never be used for commercial purposes, although there might be some possibility of its use for entertainment. We all know how that worked out.
“On May 25, 1953, KUHT made television history when it signed on the air for its premier broadcast. As America's first public television station, KUHT has served as a model and example for other educational television stations and systems throughout the country. A Houston institution, the station even pre-dates the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and the Public Broadcasting System (PBS).” (www.pbs.org) When I took trigonometry in high school, we could also watch classes from the University of Houston on KUHT. Overall, however, television has in my opinion not lived up to the initial enthusiasm as an educational instrument.
My own generation had to parent during the advent of the home computer. “Home computers were a class of microcomputers that entered the market in 1977 and became common during the 1980s.” (www.wikipedia.org) Our first home computer was an IBM PCjr. “The IBM PCjr . . . is a home computer produced and marketed by IBM from March 1984 to May 1985.” (www.wikipedia.org) Our children were introduced to computers at school using early Apple computers.
Unlike the parents of today, we did not have to be concerned about social media and the corruptive force of tablets, smartphones or smartwatches. Those early home and classroom computers were mostly used for computation and word processing.
Parenting today is a ‘whole new world.’ Children are exposed at earlier and earlier ages to both information overload and age-inappropriate content on multiple, different platforms and devices. As we have watched our own children become parents, I have been astounded by the challenges they have faced and have handled well.
I cannot help but wonder about parenting for the generation of Joseph and Mary. They faced the challenges of living in an occupied territory of a foreign empire There were garrisoned troops everywhere. They also lived in a theocracy. Their economy and social life were governed by religious authorities in a distant capital city they only visited for Passover. They raised Jesus in a small, rural village. Luke does give us the detail that, “2:40 The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him.”
Archaeologists and sociologists know from other sources that youth of Jesus’ generation learned by listening to the village elders as they sat and talked. We know from the Bible that Jesus learned the lessons well. Jesus not only knew the scriptures, he also understood their intent and purpose for daily living.
I am comforted by knowing my own grandchildren that their generation and future generations will also grow and become strong, filled with wisdom, and the favor of God will be upon them.
Teach your children well, help them grow in wisdom, trust God,
Pastor Ray