Like many parents, mine are able to amuse themselves with the same set of tales about our childhood, retelling them as if they have never before been told (sometimes, I laugh over them simply because I have heard them so many times – especially when it’s an embarrassing one that doesn’t involve me – sinister, sinister, lol).
In most cases, I was just too young to have remembered the stories they describe (for example, when I was about six months old my parents took me to the doctor more than once over a kind of bad cold that my brother before never had, but each time the doctor told them that I was fine because I still had an appetite and “Babies must have their colds.”)
But every now and then we share a common recollection: one of them my participation in scripture memory through childhood. That story helps describe the matchless, life-giving value of knowing God’s Word from infancy.
“Hiding” His Word…
I’ve mentioned it before. In preschool my parents enrolled my siblings and me in a weekly Bible memory program that we would continue through high school.
Starting off in preschool I remember getting a big, colorful book that had weekly verses linked to the “ABCs”– a verse starting with “A,” one for “B,” another for “C” – and the rest of the alphabet. I do not remember if I enjoyed it then, but I do remember marveling at that book’s design.
Sometime around second grade for me the scripture memory program went from being about perusing a cool book to embracing a thrilling challenge. Although I believe early on God gave me a desire to know Him, scripture memory in particular was fun because I loved to memorize. With school assignments I would only get a few flashcards that I could cram on a subject, such as the Battles during the Revolutionary War, but the Bible was this great big book that always had the prospect of more material to master. And even if I knew a verse in one version, I could learn it in another! As the years passed, I rolled though memory books on diverse topics such as loyalty, schoolwork, faith, friendship, prayer and courage.
I did not know then, but I was building a mental – and spiritual – repository of life-changing words that would be the most influential factor in shaping my life’s direction to date. Although as a kid I understood what I was memorizing, I did not experience too many events that made scripture come to life as it did when I neared adulthood. At that point, life happened - I had to make all those coming-of-age decisions we all do for the first time without parents present:
Where should I hang out?
Who should I hang out with?
Should I date him?
Is it wise for me to take that class?
Should I drop that one?
What occupation should I choose?
How do I be a friend in this situation?
How do I overcome that disappointment?
In making those decisions that can be tough, especially in the late teens, verses would come to mind at just the right moment to help me navigate any situation. As I went from child to adult, scripture increasingly became a lifeline.
Our Children
As I’ve see friends of mine welcome their own offspring recently, I’ve really been reminded of my prayer that more Christian parents – especially those of our generation, would raise their children not just to accept salvation or "fear God,” but also to know His Word – which will ultimately help them develop a heart to love and live for Him more than anything else can. In Deuteronomy 6:4-9 God instructed the Israelites about the need to inculcate God’s Word in their children:
4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.God did not admonish the Israelites to teach their children God’s ways only at breakfast or bedtime prayer, or at church on Sunday – but all day, every day - morning, noon and night.
Keeping The Command?
I think in our society Christian parents often have forgotten this command. A popular idea is to limit instruction of God’s Word for fear that children may get tired of the Bible and not develop a personal faith of their own, or just so that we don’t “bore” our children with it.
But I think this logic defies common human behavior when we are truly passionate about something or believe it’s important: in those cases we have no qualms about sharing our loves with our children! For example, many parents are happy to pass on devotion to a sports team, without reservation – if their child starts cheering for, say, a favorite football team, a parent probably wouldn’t say, “I won't tell my child whom to cheer for - I want my child to get older and pick a team to cheer for.” Instead, parents passionate about a team often buy their kids the team's “me-size” kiddie jersey, take them to the games – and watch the love for that team carry for generations. Likewise, parents serious about their children’s grades in school don't let them skip out on their homework just because they whine about having to do it.
Yet for God’s Word, the most important source for their lives, we often limit the value it has on our children by not using every chance that we have to allow it to shape their lives. But if we follow the advice God gives in Deuteronomy, we are to inject His precepts in every activity we do with our children – from church to recreational outings to academics and after-school activities!
Why Scripture?
When scripture is not presented as the most important source for a child, some other value (or lack thereof) will naturally take its place. Some values parents often give greater weight to than Scripture – and end up shaping a child’s identity over It – are allegiance to a political party, or the US Constitution; cultural or racial pride; family heritage; positive thinking; being a “good citizen” (e.g., civic involvement, obeying laws); earning a good living – even dedication to a church denomination or congregation more than God’s Word itself. All of those things, while not all necessarily futile pursuits in themselves, do not hold the key to a God-honoring life as meditating on the Bible does. They also can only hold eternal worth when pursued in light of God’s commands.
The Word, on The Word
The Bible provides many reasons for its paramount power for holy living as compared to all other “good” values. Hebrews 4:12 teaches us that God’s Word is living, active – powerful, and judges the thoughts and intentions of our hearts – and can clean them up in process! Second Timothy 3:16-17 says that it is breathed by God, literally His Words, and that it is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training us in righteousness, so that as Christians we will be “complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” Psalm 19 also says that it teaches us right from wrong, and that in keeping it there is great reward. Joshua 1:8 says that if we do not let it depart from our mouths – meditate on it day and night – we will be prosperous and successful; not necessarily successful in the world’s eyes, but we will have fruitful, fulfilling lives in Christ that bring Him glory.
Children & The Word
Teaching children to hide God’s Word in their hearts gives them a head start in following Christ – and sets a sharp, sure course for their lives. Ultimately, they must make a personal decision to accept salvation through Christ, but God’s Word is clear that the way to give them the opportunity to do so is to train them to know It.
When children are trained in God’s Word, they have the chance to serve God their entire lives. Proverbs 22:6 says that children raised in His Way will not depart from it, even when they are old. Psalm 119: 9-11 says that it is The Answer to a young person walking a pure path. Moreover, Scripture gives children wisdom – and conviction - beyond their years. In Psalm 119:97-104 the psalmist could say this to God in youth:
“I have more insight than all my teachers, for I meditate on your statutes. I have more understanding than the elders, for I obey your precepts...I have not departed from your laws, for you yourself have taught me.”(vv. 99-100; 102).Want your children not to give into peer pressure – to be like a tree planted by streams of water – sure and confident in Christ when other children want to pull them down? There’s a passage for that, too! When parents let God’s Word do the teaching, their children turn out better than they ever could on their instruction alone.
Timothy: A Biblical Example
Timothy is an awesome biblical example of the result of training a child in God’s way. In 2 Timothy 3:14-15 Paul says that he had known the Holy Scriptures, God's Word, from childhood, which were able to make him wise unto salvation. And it showed in his lifestyle. Despite his youth, Paul chose Timothy to go on a missionary journey, at least in part because he was a follower of Christ with a good reputation even then. He also was appointed to lead a church at a young age. As he took on his pastoral duties, Paul could tell Timothy, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.” (1 Timothy 4:12).
Kingdom Value
There are many activities we can get children to do, but none has a value equal to teaching them to hide God’s Word in their heart through Scripture memory. This realization should cause us to prioritize their pursuits. While a child might have fun playing T-ball or taking ballet lessons, very few of them will become baseball or dance stars, and even if they do, they only have so many years in the profession. But children who learn God’s Word can all grow up to be warriors for Christ. Of course this should not necessarily rule out T-ball, but it should proritize scripture memory over T-ball. And even if they lose their way at some point in their lives, they will always have God’s Word etched in their minds, and, prayerfully, it is where they will always land. Knowing God’s Word is the first step to applying it, and applying it from infancy holds matchless rewards.
Today
Even if we have not even contemplated having our own children – and regardless of our upbringing, we can make a decision to grow in our faith by meditating on God’s Word day and night. If we love it, we will not help but raise our kids to be fans of God’s Word, too. And unlike many other passions we – and they- can pursue, this one has eternal value.
Tomorrow
Matthew 24:35 says that heaven and earth will pass away, but His Word never will. If we let The Word saturate our minds, change our lives – every day, it will do the same for our children, and, prayerfully, their children’s children – leading them into a marvelous tomorrow, and an even more glorious Eternity.
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