Joash was seven yars old when he became king… All his life Joash did what was right because Jehoiada the High priest instructed him. 2 Kings 11;21, 12:2 The Living Bible

Funny how these verses are suddenly now coming to my attention but I feel it is such an important message for us all. On the radio this morning was an article about a schoolboy who had been expelled due to drug trafficking at the school a couple of months ago. Apparently the police weren’t involved and the school was choosing to deal with it themselves, counselling all the boys involved and some were suspended for a time.

Not knowing the full details it’s hard to know what to think but I am concerned that the boys involved may think that the matter was simply swept ‘under the carpet’ and that it may lead to worse things later in life. Of course there is the usual media hype about what’s taken place and people now making comment that the police should have been involved. I know if I were a parent of a child at that school I’d be asking lots of questions.

Our children are so easily influenced by their surroundings and their peers and parents have a really hard job ahead of them in trying to keep children on a straight and narrow path. But if it is instilled in them from a young age they are more likely to respect their parents’ opinion and seek to earn their parents’ respect. Some worry that it might stifle their child and restrict development if they are too ‘instructive’ whilst the child is young but if kids are left to roam ‘free’ and are not corrected from a very young age, it is far too late to change that once they reach early teens or even the pre-pubescent age. Children need to know their boundaries from a very young age - how else are they going to learn right from wrong if not from their parents?

Just as we are taught in Proverbs 22:6 “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.” This is not to say children don’t stray as they go older - often they will, but if they have no basis for knowing right from wrong they are less likely to experience a personal inner conviction when they have done something they shouldn’t.

Two different messages but both with the same intent got my attention over the past 24 hours. One was from the Proverbs 31 Ministry Devotions post ‘Mom in the Mirror’ which was an excellent message and the other from my perpetual calendar: “Abijam… was as great a sinner as his father was” (1 Kings 15:1, 3 The Living Bible). The reader is prompted to consider this question: “If my children grow up to follow in my footsteps, will I be pleased about where those footsteps lead?”

Very worthwhile question to think about. Our children do watch us and periodically I’ll hear myself in my grown daughters - most of the time I am happy with what I hear and see. There are times though when I hear my mum’s echo when I’m speaking and I pull up suddenly.

My life today is vastly different to the one I grew up in, but sometimes I revert to old patterns of thinking and responses. Whilst I had a happy childhood and knew that I was loved, there were times when we were told things that I haven’t wanted to tell my own children. I know the intent was good - they didn’t want me to get my hopes up about life and things in general and suffer great disappointments in the process, but I’ve encouraged my daughters to dream big and aim high.

What caused the difference between what I was taught and what I teach my children? I committed my life to the Lord Jesus Christ in my teen years and learnt that not everything I’d been taught aligned with the Word of God. Too many Christians today forget they are sons and daughters of a King, a child of God, and He wants the best for us - why shouldn’t we dream big and aim high?

How do your children view you as a mother and guide for their lives? As King Lemuel’s mother instructed her son in the ways of life, so must we encourage and instruct our children and not leave it to anyone else. This includes the way we react to things - children do copy mannerisms, voice tones, and the ‘wrong’ words. And it is most important that they understand their inheritance in life. Life isn’t always fair and we all experience disappointments. But if we allow those disappointments rule our decisions and plans, we will miss out on the things that God has waiting for us. Why not demonstrate that to our children too?