1 Chronicles 5:18
“The sons of Reuben, and the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh, of valiant men, men able to bear buckler and sword, and to shoot with bow, and skilful in war, were four and forty thousand seven hundred and threescore, that went out to the war.”
Child rearing is not for the weak of heart. Sadly, there seems to be a dearth of parents who are taking the time to train their children in the needed qualities to make it through life. Every parent should not just be trying to get their children out of their house without any embarrassment, but they should be training their children with the qualities they need to make it through life.
I believe we find that the sons of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh did a great job instilling needed qualities in their children. When you look at the verse above, it is obvious that these men took seriously their responsibility to train their children. They understood that it was their responsibility to instill the qualities in their children that would help them succeed in life. There were four qualities these men instilled in their children that every child needs to learn.
First, they instilled the quality of work before play. It is interesting that they didn’t show their children how to play, but they trained them to use a sword and bow. They knew that their sons would have to battle to make it through life. Every parent needs to train their children that they cannot play through life. I’m afraid the sports mentality of our society has minimized the principle that you work before you play. The best way to train this quality to your children is to make them finish their chores before they can play.
Second, they instilled the quality of hard work. Verse 21 tells us that they took the cattle and sheep. Caring for cattle was their manner of life. Children need to be taught to work hard. You will never teach your children to work hard if you help them finish a hard task. When you give your children a task, expect them to finish it no matter how hard it is. This will teach them to work hard, and it will help them to become creative thinkers on how to accomplish the hard tasks of life.
Third, they instilled the quality of toughness. These young men were not afraid to fight battles. There was a toughness in them that we need today. Young men and ladies alike need to have a toughness in them so they don’t run when things get a little tough. Don’t let your children whine or quit when something becomes hard. Life is hard, and if your children don’t have the toughness to work through the hard times, they will never reach their potential. Don’t let your children quit when something gets hard, but make them get back to the task until they finish it.
Fourth, they instilled the quality of depending on God. When these men got in the heat of the battle, they cried to God for help. The greatest quality your children can learn is to depend on God. The best way to do that is when they come to you with something that is hard, stop and pray with them to ask God to give them help to finish the task. Praying with them when a task get hard teaches them to depend on God for help.
These are not the only qualities children need, but you must work on these qualities if you want your children to make it through life. One thing for certain, you won’t have to worry about your children mooching off you the rest of their lives if you will take the time to instill these qualities in them.