A Little Bundle Of Joy

A little girl had been naughty all day. Her mother had finally taken all she could stand and sent her daughter into the back yard to fetch a switch from the willow tree. Ten minutes later the little girl still had not returned. Her mother yelled from the back door, “Get in here, and bring that switch with you!”

Lips puckered and quivering, she meekly appeared with her hands behind her back.

“Well?” the mother said, “Where is the switch?”

“I couldn’t reach the willow tree,” the youngster said, and then, holding out one hand, added, “But here’s a rock you can throw at me.”

At that, her mother’s heart melted!

Children can be mischievous. As a matter of fact, I am a little concerned when they are not. That’s what parents are for. Kids (I know they are not goats) need skilled hands to guide them. They need loving arms to embrace them. They need a gentle heart to forgive them. They need loving discipline to teach them!

Have you thanked God lately for your little ones? What a blessing they are!

How quickly they grow up and are gone! When they are young and the demands are great, we may wonder how we will survive. But, all too soon, our little one is no longer little. Our son’s a man. Our daughter’s a woman! It happened all too quickly

If you are a young parent today, I hope you will value the precious time you have with your youngster. Don’t see that baby as a burden, but a blessing. Commit yourself to being the best father or mother that child could have. The most important work you will ever do, you are doing now as you mold and shape that young life. You will never regret the sacrifices of time and resources it takes to be a good parent. But, you may regret forever your failure to make those sacrifices.

The Psalmist wrote: “Behold, children are a gift of the Lord; the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; they shall not be ashamed, when they speak with their enemies in the gate” (Psalm 127:3-5 NASB).

• Spend a lot of time with your children.
• Teach them by word and example.
• Give them a spiritual foundation upon which to build.
• Don’t send them to church, but bring them!

—Roger

SEPTEMBER 9, 2012