KEEP YOUR CHILDREN ALIVE!: OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL, 12TH NOVEMBER 2018

MEMORISE:
Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee. Exodus 20:12

READ: Proverbs 3:1-8

1 My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:

2 For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.

3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:

4 So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.

5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.

6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.  

7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.

8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.

MESSAGE

It is very unfortunate that many parents are the architects of the untimely demise of their children; not because they are witches or sorcerers, but because they are ignorant of God's word that keeps people, especially innocent children, alive. 

The word of God in today's memory verse is food for thought in this regard. At the initial stage of a child's life, he or she is ignorant of this scripture; it is therefore the duty of parents to teach them the way of the Lord established in the word of God. 

It however becomes a compound problem when parents themselves don't know the way of the Lord. Parents should serve as the voice of God in their children's lives. Godly parents will echo the words of the Lord in Proverbs 3:5-6, which says:

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”

It is saddening to observe that instead of parents teaching their children to trust in the Lord their Maker, they rather teach them to trust in the knowledge derived from the education they spend fortune to acquire. 

Some parents even see their children as being wiser than them, simply because these children can relate better with modern gadgets and appliances. Although these appliances can be deployed to serve beneficial purposes, they often mislead and introduce children to emotional, psychological and even spiritual trauma when the use of such devices by these children is not monitored and controlled. 

Some people read about Eli and his children but don't seem to learn from it (1 Samuel 2:11-4:18). Many parents are carefree when it comes to discipline, allowing their children to walk directly onto the path of destruction. 

The Lord was so grieved by the act of Eli's children that He declared this frightening judgement on Eli's household in 1 Samuel 3:12-14:

“In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house: when I begin, I will also make an end. For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever.”

May your household never come under God's judgement. Beloved, it is better not to bring children into this world than to bring them up without the fear of God. My prayer for you today is that your children will not fall prey to the devil's destructive works in Jesus' Name.

PRAYER POINT:

Father, help me to nurture the children You have given me with the spiritual nourishment in Your word. Give them ears that hear You and a heart that obeys You in Jesus' Name.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Lamentation 3-5, Luke 20:27-21:4

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE

HYMN 17: GOD, GIVE US CHRISTIAN HOMES

1. God give us Christian homes
Homes where the Bible is loved and taught
Homes where the Master's will is sought
Homes crowned with beauty Thy love hath wrought
God give us Christian homes
God give us Christian homes

2. God give us Christian homes
Homes where the father is true and strong
Homes that are free from the blight of wrong
Homes that are joyous with love and song
God give us Christian homes
God give us Christian homes

3. God give us Christian homes
Homes where the mother, in caring quest
Strives to show others Your way is best
Homes where the Lord is an honoured guest
God give us Christian homes
God give us Christian homes

4. God give us Christian homes
Homes where the children are led to know
Christ in His beauty who loves them so
Homes where the altar fires burn and glow
God give us Christian homes
God give us Christian homes.