Monday 24 February 2014

Lessons To Impress On Our Children

In my last post I began a discussion on the unhealthy trend in the lives of the youth of this generation. I mentioned a story I read in the news of an 18year old boy who killed a 12year old girl just to get the feaces of a virgin which he claimed a pastor asked him to bring in exchange for a N100,000.00 fee. And this story shocking as it may sound is just one of the many stories of the atrocities committed by the youth of this generation. One common trend among these youths is their unquenching thirst to make money by all means, be it negative or positive. Their total lack of will to wait on God for their dreams to materialize is actually very alarming.
Although I will not put the blame on the parents in totality, but I am of the opinion that the devil is out to snatch away the youths and this calls for extra vigilance on the part of the parents knowing fully well that their peace of mind in the old age is anchored on the investment in discipline and love they have been able to make in the lives of their children now that they can.
One truth that has worked for me and I am convinced to be so true is that the words of the Bible are effective. For those who know how to wait on God, the dividends of their righteousness will produce good fruits for them at the right time. Isaiah 40:31 says “But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” This is the portion of those who have learned to wait on God. This is the message that God expects that we hold for our lives and teach our wealthy hasty children as they grow.

Ecclesiastes 2:24-25
A man can do nothing better than to eat and drink and find satisfaction in his work. This too, I see is from the hand of God, for without him, who can eat or find enjoyment? To the man who pleases him, God gives wisdom, knowledge and happiness, but to the sinner he gives the task of gathering and storing up wealth to hand it over to the one who pleases God. This too is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.


The passage above teaches deep lessons that we need to learn and then teach to our children. The wealth that is stored up by sinners and through sinful means are actually been laid in wait for the righteous. It might sounds like an impossibility, but with God who is the sole owner of all wealth, He will distribute His wealth as He deems fit irrespective of our dreams, desires and actions. If anyone tries to acquire it forcefully, they only retain it for a short while and get punished for their actions.

Proverbs 12:11He who works his hands will have abundant food, but he who chases fantasies lacks judgement.

Proverbs 13:11
Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow.

Proverbs 10:22
The blessing of the Lord brings wealth, and he adds no trouble to it.

Proverbs 23:4-5
Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint.
Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.


Above are some basic truth about the pursuit of wealth that as parents we need to be mindful of and at the same time teach our children. The desire to be rich is not in anyway wrong, but the blind and ungodly pursuit of it tells how long we will be able to keep the wealth that has been acquired. No matter how fast a man gets rich and no matter the fact that he is young or old, the truth is that if his means of wealth is ungodly then it is just last a short while with very serious consequences. As parents we need to get close to our children enough to know their deepest secrets and be able to put them on the right path early enough.
A child millionaire will not necessarily translate to an adult millionaire if he has not learned to grow wise and show restraint to the pursuit of wealth. And also because the child next door is rich at a tender age does not mean that all the children on that lane should be teenage millionaires. Their destinies defer and the plan of God for their lives are different. These are the truth we need to instil in the minds of our growing children.
A child who has learned to work his hands from his youth will learn the secret of growing wealth little by little right from when he is young and be sure that his wealth will grow. It is important that as parents we start to disabuse the minds of our children from the get rich fast and young syndrome, so as to preserve their lives from death.

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