Off to Buenos Aires, Argentina

In May, I married one of my daughters. No...not the oldest one! She is moving to Buenos Aires, Argentina in a couple of days. Which causes me to consider so many things.

First, how do you send your oldest away, to a foreign country, to live among people you don't know??? In theory I think it is easy. You just say, 'good bye and best wishes,' but in reality, you do alot of soul searching.

I read an interesting thing in my devotional last night. I thought about how it relates to this subject and wanted to discuss it a little. Quoting Proverbs 24:3-4, "By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures." OK, so I don't have a problem with any of this. Who could? The writer of the devotional comments that the beautiful treasures are not tangible things like furniture, crystal, vases, and paintings but they are the rare and beautiful treasures of God-fearing, God-respecting children, with good and moral values, children who honor their mother and father and respect others. She adds that God has promised these rewards and blessings if only we would abide by His directions. THIS is where I have a problem.

As a mother of 5 totally different and unique children, I can attest that we are not guaranteed God-fearing children. No matter how pious and devout parents might be, the responsibility of salvation is solely in the hands of the child. They must choose the way of Christ. We cannot do it for them, only show them the path and give them instructions for finding the path. It is intellectually and Biblically wrong to assume that children will turn out 'God-fearing' because the parents follow Him.

So, how does this relate to sending my child off into the wild blue yonder? It relates in the sense that she is not God-fearing as her parents are. Oh, she knows all kinds of Scripture verses, and how to stand and sit at the right places during the worship service. She even know hymns by heart. But in regards to loving God with her whole heart, mind, soul and strength, she is not there. In fact, her life-style is much different than I would choose for any of my children.

Does this mean that I failed to build my house with wisdom, or establish it through understanding? No, no and no. I brought my oldest to the throne of God every day and taught her about the love of Christ, his sacrifice, his death and resurrection. I shared the Gospel with her and she 'prayed the prayer' so to speak. These outward signs are nothing if they are not lived out in our lives personally. I cannot look back and say I did 'this and such' so I messed up and she lost her salvation. There is a time of letting go and allowing our children to make their own decisions about life, love and God. They may not be my decisions, and they may be painful for us as parents to live with, BUT they are not our decisions to make. I finished the job that God had given me to train up my child in the way she should go...now I must wait for the next part of that verse to come true...that when she is old she will not depart from it. (Proverbs 22:6)

I propose that the verse mentioned in my devotional does not pertain to our children but to the 'house' we live in personally. I believe the 'house' refers to ourselves, our temple so to speak. More specifically, the spiritual temple that houses the Holy Spirit of God. If we are to be honest, I believe that most of us have a very hard time with diligence in reference to our spiritual growth. How often do we feed our souls and spirits with wisdom? Do we daily come to the throne with our whole heart, truly undivided, solely given to Him? I believe the treasures are the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit. When we sow wisdom into our spirits, the outcome can only be fruit-filled living. The more we seek God with our whole heart, the sweeter and more luscious our spirits become, exuding a beautiful aroma to all whom we encounter. We are only responsible for our own spiritual lives, not those of our children or our grandchildren or anyone else for that matter. We can affect those we love only by our own walks, but we can never EXPECT them to be God-fearing because of our works. Salvation is a personal decision. In Ephesians 1:13-14 it is written, "And you also were included in Christ when you heard the work of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession - to the praise of his glory."

Hearing and believing are two different acts. We are Christians, sealed with the Holy Spirit, when we believe. You nor I can affect a person to BELIEVE. They must choose that themselves. Believe for yourself. It is a beautiful thing to believe. Christ is ever present, the Holy Spirit is always indwelling, and God the Father sits on the Throne, Now and Forever. Amen