Wisdom relies on the Spirit, not a "Promise"
Thoughts from Hezekiah, Proverbs, and the Spirit of Wisdom
First, sorry for not sending as much writing here, but I am working on a writing project I hope to share later this year!
As I have become a father over the past two years, I have seen the world change and evolve before my eyes. One of the things I have begun to see more clearly is the lack of control we really have.
Many parents cling to the words of the proverb: 6 Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. (Prov 22:6). It is important for me to be reminded that this is not a direct promise to me, the reader, but it does naturally reflect the truths and wisdom of God. I cannot control the future of my child. I must trust the plans of God that he will hold them safely in his hands. This is a proverb of wisdom, not a promise to Abram.
Yet, when wisdom is displayed, the proverb has great vitality.
This is not to say that when children leave and become lost like the prodigal son, it's the fault of the parent. That ought to be clear. We can model righteousness, and children can eventually choose their own path.
I saw this during my reading today in the story of King Hezekiah. A righteous king, Hezekiah, was committed to the ways of the Lord. Even when generations of previous kings failed to remove the altars of false gods from the land, Hezekiah tore them down. Yet, his son, Manasseh, abandoned his ways and did evil in the sight of the Lord.
Here lies the painful and messy reality of life. There is an unseen reality that plagues the people of God—we must carefully model righteousness for our children, teaching and guiding them in the ways of the Lord, but in the end, we do not control their path.
I fear many parents default to two extremes of practice. They control every aspect of their child’s life with the strictest and most oppressive spirituality, attempting to decimate any form of ungodliness, or they allow the child to make their own decisions, all the while quietly and passively portraying their own faith.
There must be a wise and balanced approach. We must be able to confidently, lovingly, and with the boldness of the Holy Spirit model the path of righteousness and the wisdom of God for our children, all the while trusting that the lives of our children are in God’s hands, not our own.
Training up our children in the ways of God is an active endeavor, but it is not merely about righteousness, but about wisdom—a constant seeking of the Holy Spirit in what we ought to do as parents in this ever-evolving world. The context of our world may drastically change, but the evil and root issues remain the same. We are in need of the Holy Spirit to reveal to us the ways in which we must walk.
May the Holy Spirit reveal truth to us today.