Deuteronomy 6:5
“And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”
The best child-rearing advice that God gave His people was to get their Christianity settled before they tried to teach them. Parents can tell their children what to do, but their children will not heed unless they are living it themselves. God says in verse 7, “And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” This verse on child rearing comes after the parents settled verse 5. God knew that if they settled what verse 5 teaches, their training would then be done through experience and not by hearsay. There are three things God wants parents to resolve before they start teaching their children.
First, parents are to settle their love for God before they start training their children. The verse above says, “And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart…” Your children will not turn out for God if they perceive that your love for something else is greater. You can tell your children that they need to serve the LORD, but they will emulate whatever you place before God. God cannot come in a close second with your love, but He must be the first love of your life. When your children see that you will miss church for a ballgame or a big business meeting, they will understand from your example that these other things are more important than God. This is not to say that you don’t love God, but He must be your first love, the One Whom you love with all of your heart if you want your children to serve Him.
Second, parents are to settle their soul before training. Your soul is who you are. You need to determine if you are going to be an old paths Baptist or not. Many children get confused because their parents never settle who they are and where they are going. Your direction matters to your children. Children pick up on direction much easier than words. When they see you praise liberals and condemn the preacher for preaching an old paths sermon, they perceive that you are not for the old paths. Settle who you are and don’t change your soul midstream. Most of the time when I have seen a parent change their soul midstream, I have watched their children go off the deep end into the world because their parents appear to be fakes. If you settle your soul, your children will recognize the legitimacy of your Christianity.
Third, parents are to settle their effort before training their children. Notice that God says, “…all thy might.” It is great that you have your love and soul settled, but children also need to see parents who give their whole effort in serving the LORD. Don’t give a second-rate effort with anything you do for the LORD. God challenges us in Ecclesiastes 9:10, “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might…” As my mother used to say quite often to me, “If it is worth doing, then do it right the first time.” In other words, don’t give God a half-effort, but give Him your all.
Your children need to see that your life and words equal each other. When what you teach matches the life you live, your children will understand that the Christian life is worth living. If your life and words don’t equal each other, change whatever is causing them not to match so that your children have the right example of true and authentic Christianity.