Four Biblical Keys for Godly Parenting

Well, with tomorrow being Mother's Day, I've been thinking about how grateful to God we should be for those precious women in our lives who we call Mom. Moms, mothers, mommies come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, and types. Some moms are petite and delicate. Some are plump and full of hugs and laughter. Some moms can cook up delicious family meals seemingly out of nowhere, and while others are best at knowing exactly how to calm a storm of emotions and how to give just the right, godly advice.

No matter what problems may come along, in any case, whether it be how to stretch the family dollar, how to juggle after-school piano lessons and softball practice and ballet for three kids, or how to keep the family safe and at peace with one another while staying safe at home as ordered, moms do it. They're able to do it. And now I know dad may know best, but mom somehow, in my experience, seems to know a little bit better. I hope I don't get in trouble for saying that.

And dads, I would say, are grateful for moms for their wives. And at times when we were challenging our families, I think we'd all agree, where would we be in our families without mom? The fact is, families work best when fathers and mothers work together as one in following the guidelines and the guidance and help of God's scripture along with the help of his Holy Spirit. These parents humbly and profoundly appreciate that God is also calling their children to be in his God's divine family. And it's our prayer as parents that in due time our children will also appreciate that fact that God is calling them. Now, why do we believe that God is calling our children? A fundamental verse is found in the words of Paul, and if you turn with me over to 1 Corinthians 7, 14, I'd like for us to read it together. 1 Corinthians 7, verse 14. Now, here Paul is explaining that the unbelieving spouse of a person who is converted and follows Christ is holy or set apart by God, and so are their children. And what we learn here is that they have special access to the knowledge of the way of God. And so then Paul writes 1 Corinthians 7, 14, for the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife, and the unbelieving wife is sanctified by the husband. Otherwise, your children would be unclean, but now they are holy. And so parents have a vital role in teaching their children about God and his precious calling, and how God and his church also are part of that support to the parents in bringing up the children and helping to educate the children. Now, God desires fathers and mothers to work together and to the best of their ability to provide a supportive and nurturing family. And in that nurturing family is where they can best teach and train their children in how to have a right relationship with God and how to walk in his way, the way and only way that leads to eternal life and salvation. Now, how parents teach their children about God varies, and it changes according to the child's age, to the child's personality, and their development. And as we know, family life rarely means that one day is exactly like the other. But God's Holy Scripture shows that some things do remain consistent and timeless when it comes to parenting God's way. In this split sermon, we will review four biblical keys for godly parenting. And since tomorrow is Mother's Day, we will give special consideration to how mothers apply and can apply these keys with their children. The title of today's split sermon is Four Biblical Keys for Godly Parenting. Four biblical keys for godly parenting. I only have four. I'm sure there are many others, but I'm going to give you four today. So, key number one. Key number one is parents must be there for their children. Parents must be there for their children.

It is absolutely vital that parents be there for the children, that we as parents must be available. We must be involved in our children's lives. Of all people who will impact the lives of our children, we parents have the greatest potential to make a positive impact in their lives. Far more powerful impact than our children's friends, far more positive and powerful than their teachers, and more than their ministers, more than any other people they will meet.

But we can only have that positive and powerful impact if we are available to them. I don't mean just being there physically. That's not quite enough. But we also have to be there for them mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Let's turn to the book of Proverbs.

By the way, we're going to be going to Proverbs off and on in this sermon, so you might want to bookmark that. In fact, I'm going to do the very same thing. If you turn with me to Proverbs chapter 22 verse 6 to begin with. Proverbs 22 verse 6.

As we know, the book of Proverbs is filled with some of the greatest wisdom and insights about people and about life and about how to relate to God and how to relate to one another. In Proverbs 22 verse 6, it gives us parents hope about our efforts in teaching our children God's way of life. It's familiar. It says Proverbs 22.6, train up a child in the way he should go. Of course, that way would be the way of God. And when he is old, he will not depart from it.

Also, let's look at Proverbs 1 verse 8 through 9.

Proverbs chapter 1 verse 8 through 9. Here we find another set of verses that also give us comfort as parents. Here we have a parent addressing his son. Verse 8. He says, My son, hear the instruction of your father, and do not forsake the law of your mother, for they will be a graceful ornament on your head and chains about your neck. What we learn from these scriptures is that the father and the mother share the responsibility of teaching their children how to live. It does not evolve solely on the mother or solely on the father. They both must be involved in training and teaching their children, their child. And the idea here of what is being taught, the implicit reference, is to live with reverence for God and obedience to his commandments. It's a fear of God. Fear God and keep his commandments. And the understanding here is that children who follow their parents' teachings in the ways of God will receive blessings in notable honor. This graceful ornament is akin to a metaphorical crown. You'll be recognized, and the chains about your neck are chains of nobility. It's not chains of slavery or any such thing like that. It's things to be honored and noted. But the comfort of these scriptures give us parents will be less sure if we don't make ourselves available to our children in a meaningful way. This point takes us to Deuteronomy 6, verses 5 through 9. So let's turn there next, please. Deuteronomy 6, verse 5 through 9.

I can't seem to find enough pages to go back with. There we go. Deuteronomy 6, verse 5 through 9. Again, familiar scriptures. Here God commanded Israel, who's chosen people, to be diligent in teaching their children. Teaching their children, his children too, his Ten Commandments. In the Ten Commandments, Moses had just enumerated. We can see that in the latter half of Deuteronomy 5, verse 6, 21. And so what we see here is our need to teach God's commandments in the way of life.

And we're going to see it was vital back then, and is still vital for our children today. Deuteronomy 6, verse 5, we read, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. And there he's speaking to the parents. Verse 7, You shall teach them diligently to your children, and you shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, when you lie down, when you rise up.

You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. And you shall write them on the door post of your house and on your gates. Verses 5 through 6 in particular show us, as we understand these scriptures, it shows us God's expectation that parents themselves will love him and be devoted to him and his way of life. And it's because his words will be lodged in their very core, in their very hearts, in the center of their lives.

And so God expects parents to live according to his law and ways. It's hard to teach something if you're not living at yourself, if you don't know what it's about yourself. And so it is, in order to teach God's ways, parents, and all of us for that matter, must be striving to live God's way. And then here, as we see in verse 7, verse 7 instructs parents to teach diligently, meaning use every opportunity to teach children about God's ways.

And so we see that when you're sitting in your house, or when you're out of your house walking along the way, when you're going to bed, when you're lying down, when you rise up. God expected instruction. It would seem to occur naturally, not necessarily always formally in a classroom type setting, but naturally, as a family went about its daily activities.

And to teach diligently, that would require that parents had to be there. They had to be available for their children. God has the same expectation for us today. Dads and moms should be ready and willing to talk about God openly and freely with their children. They shouldn't be embarrassed to talk about God. When I was growing up, the community I grew up in, people didn't talk much about God outside of church, and I didn't grow up in the Church of God. So talking about God should be the norm in our families, and it should be woven in every aspect of our lives.

Every day from morning to night, no matter what task is at hand, dads and moms should be ready to teach their children about God. We never quite know what will come up that will offer us an opportunity to teach something about God. Now, with a nod towards Mother's Day and honoring our mothers, I think it's fair to say that mothers have a huge part in teaching their children, especially in the child's early years. And so it is that mothers can help children turn aside from their natural, normal inclination to strike back and revenge, or to pay back for something hurtful done to them, instead of trusting God to make things right.

That's something we have to teach our children, and moms are great at that. Moms can help their children learn to love their neighbor by literally helping their next-door neighbor rake leaves, do chores, as they have opportunity. Moms can teach their children the principle of doing good, and so maybe they can have them take the trash can out up to the street, not as a chore, but something they can do maybe to surprise dad or to surprise the neighbor.

In little ways and big, moms can be pretty wise in helping their children learn to live God's way of life. They have to be available. Parents have to be available. Now, key number two. Parents must nurture their children. Parents must nurture their children. Now, nurturing our children means more than just providing them with the basic things food and shelter, clothing, toys, all the big bigger boy toys, bigger girl toys as well. It means more than just making sure they get an education. Nurturing means providing them, as well as these, it means providing them a loving and supportive environment in our family. It means making the house a home, making the house a home where our children receive encouragement, comfort, and affection, where they can receive unconditional love and the freedom to try new things, even the freedom to try and to fail.

Mothers, again, tend to be exceptionally good at nurturing.

Now, we gain the sense of what family life should be like with Paul's directions back in Ephesians 6, verse 4. We get a taste of what family life should be like, and I guess on the other hand, what it should not be like in Ephesians 6, verse 4. It's here that Paul tells fathers to bring up their children in the training and admonition of the Lord. Ultimately, father is the head of the household. He is ultimately responsible for that child's education, but again, the mother and father need to be working together at that. Now, these words do sound familiar to us, and they further emphasize the need for parents, especially fathers, to be available to teach their children. But Paul says something a little bit more here to the fathers than just that. He says, and you fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath. That's something we must be careful about if we're going to be making an environment in our homes that is nurturing. Fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. Paul directly tells dads not to provoke. Another word here I've seen used is not to exasperate or aggravate their children.

Fathers may be more prone to aggravating their children. I'm not sure if that's true for everyone, but perhaps we dads are less patient. Perhaps we dads would rather just bark out orders or simply hand out discipline rather than patiently listening to our children, rather than trying harder to empathize with them, to really try hard to understand their frustrations, their angers, their troubles.

And yet, at the same time, Paul is addressing fathers. I believe his direction to fathers can easily apply to mothers as well. Children, if you have little ones at home or ever have, I think you would understand this. Children are demanding. They can get underfoot. They're always in need of something else all the time. It never seems to end, especially when they're young.

And frankly, the mothers tend to take the brunt of this. A lot of times the dad's out of the house, but mom's at home. And this can be exhausting. And so it's easy for moms to bark at the children. It's easy for moms at times to be harsh and maybe say words, maybe some ugly words they wish they hadn't said. You know, sometimes we're so prone to giving children timeouts. Sometimes parents need a time out from the children. Sometimes the parents need a time out from the children to have more time with God, to reestablish that inner strength and patience they need with the help of His Spirit. So fathers and mothers should remain available in the lives of their children. Yes, this is part of nurturing. However, that doesn't mean that our personal involvement in their lives remains the same as it were when they were 12 years old. They may be 32 now. So we should expect a little bit different involvement on the parents' part in the lives of their children than when they were that young. And even when they're old, when our children are grown, our children still need to know that we as parents are there for them, of course in different and more mature ways.

But the parents need to keep being there, need to keep nurturing their children at the same time, because parents' love for children, whether they're young or old, should be a very powerful and strong love, not easily given up, not easily put aside. And so it should be a rarity for parents to abandon or to forsake their children, even though they may be old. Although we might not get that sense of meaning in a scripture that talks about parents' love, let's turn to Psalm 27 verse 10. Psalm 27 verse 10 says something here that could be misunderstood depending on which translation you're looking at. It gives us a sense of what a father's and mother's love is like, how powerful it is. In the New King James version, Psalm 27 verse 10 reads like this. It says, When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take care of me. Now, if you read that as it is out of context without trying to dive in to see what the actual Hebrew word has as a connotation and denotative meaning, it'd be easy to misinterpret the verse to mean that fathers and mothers will inevitably abandon and forsake their children.

It's not quite what it should mean, and I don't think that's an idea we need to expect of our parents, nor should it be something parents should expect. Well, I'm going to let my kids go and take care of themselves. I'm not going to worry about them at all anymore. That may not quite be right, and that wouldn't surely be encouraging. There are other translations that offer a more reassuring reading, readings which are a little closer to the original intent here. One such reading comes from the Jewish Publication Society of 1917, the JPS. Verse 10 reads this way, it reads, "'Though my father and mother forsake me, though they should forsake me.'" Doesn't it necessarily carry the same meaning that they will? The New English translation puts it this way, a different one. It says, "'Even if my father and mother abandon me, then the Lord will take care of me.'" And so there is a sense here, in one sense of the meaning, that parents should be concerned about their children, even old age. As grandparents and great-grandparents, we are still very much concerned for our children's well-being and, of course, for our grandchildren and great-grandchildren, of which I have none yet. So these verses reveal that God expects fathers and mothers to be there for their children, of course, barring death or some other something else beyond a parent's control. There should still be that connection of love and concern. This verse also suggests that the only love greater than a father's and mother's love for their child is God's love. That gives us a little perspective of what a parent's love should be like. And I think that is something for us to think about as we're considering how to meet God's expectation of nurturing our children. Now, that being said, scripture indicates that this sort of nurturing love for children is a particular strength of mothers. Let's notice this idea over in Isaiah 49 verse 15. In Isaiah chapter 49 verse 15, we see that mothers seem to have a rather natural desire to comfort, encourage, and love their children. And here in Isaiah 49, 15, God compares his enduring love for his people Israel to the love of a mother for her child. Here's what it says in verse 15, can a woman forget her nursing child and have compassion on the son of her womb and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Is that possible for a mother to do that? Surely they may forget, God says, yet I will not forget you. Seems to be a rarity if a mother could do that. And again, let's turn to Isaiah 66 verse 13. Isaiah 66 verse 13, God again compares his loving comfort for his chosen people to the comfort that a mother gives to her child. Isaiah 66, 13, as one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you, and you shall be comforted in Jerusalem. Again, God comparing his comfort for his chosen ones for his people as to that of a mother's comforting love, nurturing love for her child.

Now, it is true that dads can and often do comfort their children, but nothing satisfies them at times like mom does. In my own experience, it kind of hurts a little bit as a dad growing, as I was growing up, my kids too. It kind of hurt my own experience. How many, in remembering just how many times my children and their little toddlers would fall down and scrape their little hands from their knees, bleed, and come crying to me for comfort. And of course, I'd become super dad. I'd jump to it. Problem-solver dad here. I'd clean them up, bandage them with the, maybe a superman bandage or something, take care of their owies, give them a hug and a kiss on the cheek, and scoot them back. Get back out there. But you dads know what I'm going to say. If mother were there, if mom was there, they would almost always go to her. They'd go around me and make a beeline for mom. Dads must comfort and nurture their children. That's true. But I have to admit, moms usually do it better. And that seems to be among God's gifts to mothers. One of the reasons, perhaps, we all have that natural inclination to love our mothers very strongly. No, moms are good, rather good at nurturing their children, and it can be rather simple to nurture your child. It can be as simple as bath time. When the mom bays her little ones squeaky clean, then picks them up, dries them off in that big fluffy towel, and then cuddles them that extra long time with one more squeeze before letting them get their jammies on and get into bed to have a bedtime story read. That's all part of the nurturing. She doesn't have to do it, but she loves doing it, and the child loves it. Nurturing can be as simple as the mom baking cookies as a special treat after a long day, not because she has to, but because she loves her family, and she wants them to enjoy it. Or maybe when the kids are older, nurturing can simply mean how mom is really good at listening to the children talk out their frustrations of the day and offering them that special encouragement and understanding that moms can be very good at.

And so nurturing our children is powerful stuff, and moms are good at it, but dads can be too. Nurturing our children is powerful stuff and necessary in our families.

Key three, parents must discipline their children. Oh, yes, the part the children may not like as much.

Which of us is children like the discipline? But parents must discipline their children. That's a key to godly parenting. And so right along with being there for our children and nurturing them is God's expectation that we discipline our children. Just as God expects obedience from his children, we adults, so must we teach our children obedience to God into our own instruction and commands, especially when they're very young and still at home. Now, we are very familiar with the scriptures that speak of disciplining children through the use of the rod. Let's turn back to Proverbs 22.15, for example. Proverbs 22.15. Proverbs 22.15, it says, foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child. The rod of correction will drive it far from him.

And while we're in the neighborhood, let's also look in Proverbs 23. Next page, Proverbs 23.13-14. This one tells parents, do not withhold correction from a child, for if you beat him with the rod, he will not die. You shall beat him with the rod and deliver his soul from hell or from the grave. No doubt these verses speak of using a stick or something similar to help shape the growth and the development of children. And some of us know that a whooping can scare a child into right behavior real quick. And from my own childhood experience, I had more than my fear—well, I earned them all, and it helped me.

And nowadays we have learned that the use of the rod need not always be called for.

Some children have a more malleable temperament. I've seen it. I've experienced it. For them, a time-out from a favorite toy or activity is disciplined enough to correct bad behavior. Other children are a little more stubborn. They may need a little bit of that rod.

But that remains a parent's choice. At least it's a choice for some, because there are different parts in this world where corporal punishment or whoopins have been outlawed. You're not allowed to do that, and you need to be aware of that and where you live. But whether it's time-outs or the rod, what's also necessary, especially, is our loving discipline. It must be accompanied to be effective with instruction. We must be very clear on why they are being disciplined. The need for discipline to be accompanied with instruction is made clear. Let's turn now to Proverbs 29, verse 15, still in the book of Proverbs. The need for discipline to be accompanied with instruction is made clear here in Proverbs 29, 15 through 17. Here we read, The rod and rebuke give wisdom. It seems to suggest there should be that teaching part of it involved. But a child left to himself brings shame to his mother. And then verse 17, Correct your son, and he will give you rest. Yes, he will give delight to your soul. And so there's this underlying principle for discipline children, and that is the principle as it's used to teach children to teach them to obey. It's critical and crucial that toddlers, little children, learn that no means no. They need to learn early on that stop means stop.

Knowing what stop means can keep that child from running out into the street in the middle of traffic. I've seen it. Some will listen and some don't. It's absolutely terrifying if you've ever seen that happen. And so knowing what stop means can keep a child from being killed, from being harmed. And we discipline our children because we love them. That should be the reason for disciplining our children, because we love them. And it's for their own good. And we really mean it that way. It's really true. You see, that's the same reason God disciplines us, because He loves us, and it's for our own good, too. The discipline we give our children for their overall good will help them understand that God must sometimes discipline and correct us for the same reason for our own good. Even when we're old and gray, sometimes we need God's loving discipline correction. I made the comment to one of my kids, I think once, that God was spanking daddy for something he did. And I don't remember what that was either. But I remember the shocked look to my child's face, children's face. God spanks you. Oh yeah, I'm God's child, too. And God will spank you, too, by the way. If dad doesn't know, God's going to know. So there you go, double scare for the kids. I probably shouldn't have done that. Excuse me. Let's look in Hebrews 12, verse 5 through 7.

Hebrews 12, verse 5 through 7.

This is where the point becomes a little clearer. Hebrews 12, verse 5 through 7, speaking to Christ's followers. And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as sons. It says, My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord. No be discouraged when you are rebuked by him, for whom the Lord loves he chastens. And he scourges every son whom he receives. If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons. For what son is there whom a father does not chasten? If the father really loves his child, he will discipline him. And then skipping down to verse 11. Now, no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but it's painful. But nevertheless, after the chastening, the chastening yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it. I guess it would suggest by those who are willing to be trained by it. And so we see it is this understanding how to obey as a child that that will help our children learn the importance of being God in his laws and commands, even as they grow on up into adulthood. So love for our children requires us as parents to make clear and fair rules, make the boundaries clear and well instructed, help them to know what is good and bad behavior. And just as God expects us to believe God and to do what he says, so must we develop that same respect as parents for our parental authority in our children. We cannot let our children, in essence, tell us what to do. We must be helpful in showing them that's not right for them. The parents must teach the value of willing obedience, and that takes great patience and consistency in our part. And now, once again, moms are very good at this. They can be very good at this. They're very good at disciplining children without bringing out the rod. I could share a personal story from my own family. Of course, I'm not going to mention names, but when our children were small, they'd riled themselves up over something and gotten into a little fight. Now, my wife was there. I remember coming in the house rather shocked to see what was going on. But my wife had the idea which she had learned from a good friend of hers some years ago, and so she borrowed that idea and had my two kids who had been fighting. They were, you know, elementary school age, something like that, maybe younger.

She had our two children sit on the couch and hold hands until they would say, I love you, in a very meaningful way, looking at each other in the face and the eyes and saying it. That's the part I was a little shocked at. I'd never seen this sort of disciplining before.

And they did say it. I cannot tell you how long it took, but they did it because they could not get off that couch until they had. And my son is grinning over here. He remembers it. The point is, their mother wanted them to learn, to forgive, and to love one another. The brothers and sisters should be more than best friends. They need to love each other. And so she disciplined them in a way that was effective for them at that time. And to this day, my children have not forgotten that experience. Perhaps that's something they'll pass on if they have kids one day. And by the way, they don't fight anymore. They really don't. At least not around dad and mom. I don't know. I won't look at my son. Anyway, so we must practice godly discipline. And that takes us to key number four. We must model godly behavior. We must model godly behavior. For the teaching and instruction of parents to be credible, for it to have meaning to be believed and practiced by their children, then fathers and mothers must openly demonstrate when in public and in private, at home, that they themselves are striving to practice what they teach and with reverence and faithful obedience to God. Dads and moms teach God's ways best when they also live it themselves. If, on the other hand, we would teach our children reverence and obedience to God, but then we ourselves live out our own lives without respect for God, without sincere effort to obey God, our children will eventually find it out. They will notice. In this regard, let's look at the words of Proverbs 10, verse 9. It's very important that we practice integrity when we teach our children and when we model godly behavior. Proverbs 10, verse 9.

Proverbs 10, verse 9 says, He who walks with integrity walks securely, and be sure of himself, but he who perverts his ways will become known. Children watch their parents closely. And you know this. You parents know this. Children watch their parents closely. They are so sharp to notice, I found, exactly when parents might bend their own rules, might break their own rules, when parents might be practicing just a touch of a double standard, or when we might even be acting too much like a hypocrite. When parents do that, when parents do that, they lose much of the credibility in the eyes of their own children. And so, as we say, parents must walk the walk, and they must talk the talk. And now, why would mothers who revere and obey God be so conscientious of setting a right and godly example for their children? They're conscientious of that fact because they love their children, and they want them to be blessed of God, not just in this age, but in the age of God's kingdom to come. Over in Proverbs 31, we are, I'm sure, familiar with the section of Scripture commonly referred to as a Proverbs 31 woman. And here we find the example of the ideal wife and mother who creates this wonderful and nurturing environment for her children, for the entire family, wherein they can grow and flourish. And here, I just want to read a section and you can go back and study this. I'd encourage you to do that perhaps later. Verse 25 through 29. I would like to read this. Verse 25, Proverbs 31. Strength and honor are her clothing. She shall rejoice in time to come. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness. She watches over the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed. Her husband also, and he praises her. He says, Many daughters have done well, but you excel them all. One absolutely wonderful thing for husbands to tell their wives. And so these verses provide a model that moms and we all, in a sense, can strive for in our own families. To practice this sort of kindness, to practice this sort of love, which is appreciated and praised within the family. Moms, especially, can be good at this. And taking our cue from Proverbs 31, we should also understand that parents who nurture their children will become closer to God if they're doing it God's way. If they're practicing and They're practicing and modeling kindness. They're practicing repentance from sin and producing the fruit of God's Holy Spirit. Those fruits are listed in Galatians 5.22-26. I want to read that list, but also a few more scriptures there. Galatians 5.22-26. I know most of you know this by heart. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such, there is no law. And those who are Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Think of this, parents. This is what we're doing. And those who are Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. Now, as I say, many of us know this list of godly fruits by heart. But how well do we conscientiously strive to practice them, to live them, and to model them in our families? I wonder how well we've done at modeling godly behavior during these many weeks of staying at home. We may have been challenged in recent days. And let's also not neglect this importance of verse 26. Verse 26, it says, Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Here again we find reference to provoking one another. It's the same idea that Paul had warned fathers not to do to their children. Here it would seem that selfishness and pride can be at the root of provoking or aggravating one another within our families. It could be at the root of exasperating, provoking our children.

That's not the thing we need to be doing in our families, is it?

That is the worldly carnal way of life. We should not be modeling behavior that is sinful and founded in pride, conceit, self-righteousness, and so on.

That nurturing fruit of God's Holy Spirit is what we especially need in our families.

In greater harmony will exist where parents can humble themselves and apologize to each other, where they can admit they're wrong and say they're sorry, and then especially where parents are able to humble themselves when wrong and apologize to their own children.

That can be hard, but it's extremely necessary.

What a powerful example of modeling godly behavior within a family is when parents can admit their mistakes even to their children, repent, and apologize on an absolutely fine example we're setting for our children of godliness.

So those are the four points of godly parenting. And so it is that God allows to parents only so much time, and it goes quick. I didn't believe it at the time, but I do now. It goes quick. Only so much time, only so many opportunities to be with our children and to teach them about him and his way of life, to be with, to teach them and help them understand the promise of eternal life to those who would repent and receive it. And so it's very important and vital that parents make good use of their time with their children.

And a mother's love exudes a special and powerful hold on the hearts of her children.

And if it would be that the memory of mom's diligent teaching about God, about her firm but loving discipline, her nurturing care, her consistent modeling of godliness, if that's what helps to keep our children centered on God, then let's say hallelujah. Hallelujah. Thank you, God, for godly parents, and thank you especially for godly moms. You know, parenting we know is not easy. All parents slip and fall. All parents make mistakes. But when we do, we must get up, brush ourselves off, repent, and begin anew. After all, isn't that what we teach our children? And isn't that what scripture itself teaches us? And one more thing, perhaps in addition to all this, we parents should also pray. We should also pray that God would please help our children to remember all the good we've taught them and to help them to forget the bad.

Happy Mother's Day.