Today was the last message in our series “Parenthood”. I spoke about children/loved ones who are prodigals and are running away from God. This message really struck a chord with a number of people. I had many parents come up to me and share their heartache regarding their children who are distant from God.
I think one of the most encouraging things I shared was that God understands parental pain. There’s no one who understands better what it’s like to hurt as a parent than God. If there is anyone who is perfect, it is God, the perfect Father, and He took Adam and Eve and He put them in the perfect environment, Paradise, He gave them everything. He said to them, “There’s only one rule, eat from any tree you want, but just don’t eat from that one." He gave them a simple rule, and what happened? They rebelled against that one rule; a perfect Father with rebellious children. Think about the nation of Israel, God’s chosen nation, His own children. Over and over again God blessed the nation of Israel, and what did His children do? They continued to rebel and turn from their perfect Heavenly Father.
The point is, even if you are a perfect parent it is possible that your child could become rebellious. Sure, parents have a major influence in their children’s lives, but just like we can’t take all the credit when they turn out great, we also can’t take all the blame when they struggle. God is ultimately the One who helps them turn out great, and God is ultimately the One that can bring them out of the trouble that they’re in. So our prayer becomes “God do whatever it takes to bring our children back to you.”
This has been a wonderful series - very helpful and perfect timing. It is easy to fall into the "terrible parent" syndrome. Last week was especially helpful to go right to the verses you had given us and show my children that it is our responsibility to give them consequences and we are not doing our jobs if we do not follow Gods rules for us. Thank you so much!
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