Family Time

March 16, 2025 16 “So do not pray for this people nor offer any plea or petition for them; do not plead with me, for I will not listen to you. 17 Do you not see what they are doing in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The children gather wood, the fathers light the fire, and the women knead the dough and make cakes to offer to the Queen of Heaven. They pour out drink offerings to other gods to arouse my anger. 19 But am I the one they are provoking? declares the Lord. Are they not rather harming themselves, to their own shame?  Jeremiah 7

The Lord tells Jeremiah not to pray for the people because He will not listen.  Why?  Because they are steeped in idol worship.  Everyone in the house was involved.  The children were gathering the wood, the father’s lit the fire, and the women made the cakes to offer to the Queen of Heaven and other gods.  It seemed good and right that they were, as a family, worshipping together.  And yet everything they were doing was to their own, and their children’s, harm and shame. 

The first impression of God that children come to know is their parents.  They look to them for everything.  We all fail as parents, but if we ultimately lead them into relationship with the one true God, and into knowledge of His word, we have fulfilled our most important duty.

I grew up in the days when the basic role of the father was to be the provider, and the wives were the homemakers. Moms should be home with their children if possible

It was great! My mom had the extra duty of being the spiritual leader. My dad grew up in a Christian home, but his dad was not the spiritual leader. His mom was.

My dad seemed unconcerned about his kids and his own spiritual condition. I used to wonder about that…a lot. Doesn’t he know the danger? I feel certain that if my mom didn’t take us we would never have seen the inside of a church. Was my dad a bad person. Absolutely not! He took care of us. We had everything we needed and then some.

But he would have been a better dad and husband if he had surrendered to his higher calling. The world was too big of a draw.

To mislead your own children is reprehensible but millions of parents do just that. Parents lead their children into false religions, or no religion at all.  By example, they teach them to lie, steal, cheat, to be hateful, bigoted and so on.  How thankful we can be today that our Heavenly Father will never fail, mislead, harm or shame us!  Not only that, but by following His example and the principles of His word we can lead our own children and grandchildren into the light of His wonderful truth! The blessing can reach down into many generations!-LG

Deuteronomy 7:9-10

9 “Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments; 10 and He repays those who hate Him to their face, to destroy them. He will not be slack with him who hates Him; He will repay him to his face.