Month: November 2014

Tell the Next Generation

Posted on by hammfam

family pic“And there arose another generation who did not know the Lord or the work that He had done for Israel.” –Judges 2:10

I spent the fall studying the book of Joshua with a group of ladies. We marveled at the Lord’s faithfulness seen as promise after promise was fulfilled, and God worked on behalf of His people. We are preparing to study Judges this spring, and will be greeted right away with this tragic verse. There are two things seen here that the next generation did not know – the Lord, and the work that He had done.

One of the greatest fears of Christian parents is that their children would not know the Lord; that despite all our efforts of teaching and modeling the Gospel to our children, it would fall on deaf ears. However, ultimately, we know that we cannot guarantee that our children, the next generation, will know the Lord – it is God’s work to change hearts and bring about a saving knowing of Him. We trust and cling to the sovereign goodness of God to save our children.

But the great tragedy in these verses is that the generation following Joshua did not know the work that God had done.

This next generation somehow did not know about God parting the River Jordan or the miracle of the sun standing still. They did not know about God fighting for His people and giving them victory over the Canaanites – city after city after city. God displayed His might time after time for the people in Joshua’s day. Yet they did not tell their children? The next generation did not know the Lord or the work that He had done? It seems incredulous! How can that be?

But could we not be guilty of the same thing? Are we faithful to tell our children the great and mighty works that the Lord has done in our lives? Have they heard our “sun stands still” and “battle of Jericho” stories? Do they know our testimonies of how God gave us new life? Do they know of God’s faithfulness in the grand occasions and in the day-to-day “the Lord will fight for you” moments?

Psalm 78 similarly exhorts parents, to “tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might, and the wonders that he has done… so that they should set their hope in God.”

We are to continually tell our children who God is (His might) and what He has done (His deeds and wonders).

What are some ways we can tell of His works?

  • We can tell by speaking about God in the day to day of life rather than segmenting our “religious talk” to certain conversations. 
  • We can tell by testifying to God’s faithfulness towards our family – in keeping His promises to us, providing for our family, and His presence with us in both our joys and trials.
  • We can tell with stories of God’s work historically by reading of great men & women of faith before us. 
  • We can tell with stories of God’s work globally by learning about other cultures and how He is God of all the nations.
  • We can tell by supporting and praying for missionaries; by having them over for a meal when they are in town, and inviting our children to linger at the table and hear their stories.
  • We can tell by taking our children on mission trips with us, allowing them to see first hand the wonders God is doing worldwide.
  • We can tell by bringing our children to the worship service with us so that we can worship and learn about God together.
  • We can tell by talking as a family about what we are learning in church, bible study, and Sunday school.
  • We can tell by finding ways to serve as a family, allowing our children to experience the joy in serving and giving to others.
  • We can tell by seeking opportunities for our children to witness baptisms and to hear testimonies of God’s saving work.

Ultimately, the goal of all this telling is that our children, the next generation, would “set their hope in God.”  We tell, we proclaim, we testify as a means of grace that the Lord might use in saving our children.

Oh, that it would never be said that our children do not know the works of the Lord because we have not told them.  May we trust Him to save as He pleases among the next generation, but never tire to faithfully make known the works that He has done – His deeds, His might and His wonders.

Starve the Crush!

Posted on by hammfam

CrushI lead a small group of 8th grade girls at church. We talk a lot about boys. Actually we talk more about men. “We date men, not boys!” is one of our group mantras. I try to encourage the girls to hold off for a few years on “pairing up” or having committed boyfriend/girlfriend relationships. Let’s give it some time for the boys to grow into men.. (while the girls grow into women as well!)

So, the burning question becomes, “What’s a girl to do in the mean time?”

Push Pause:

I’ve tried to tell my girls that it’s not wrong to have a crush. It is very normal. God has made you this way – with an interest in and feelings for the opposite sex. It’s a God-given gift that will one day turn into romantic passion for a spouse, it just needs to be put on “pause” until the right time.

So what do you do with a crush during the “pause” years? You can either “feed” it and it will grow or “starve” it until the right time. Sadly, what I see most pre-teens and teens doing is feeding their crushes… and they grow and grow and grow!

I asked my girls to tell me what feeding a crush might look like. They knew!

  • Flirting
  • Stalking the boys on social media
  • Following the boys around/ intentionally being where they are
  • Talking about the crush with girlfriends who will encourage it
  • Seeking attention

So then we talked about what it would look like to starve a crush.

  • Instead of flirting, acting like friends
  • Being careful on social media
  • Talking about the crush with mom or others who will offer wise counsel
  • Not seeking attention
  • Treating boys like brothers (1 Timothy 5:2)

1 Timothy 5:1-2 pretty well sums it up. “Treat older women as mothers and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.”   Young men are to treat all females in their lives as either a mother or a sister.  Young women are to treat all males in their lives as either a father or a brother.  That should help starve the crush!

“With absolute purity!”  This is pretty clear.  Purity in thought, purity in action, purity in words, purity in what we post on social media.

So if this is what not to do during the “pause” years, what am I encouraging the girls to do?

Pursue godly character:

First and foremost, you should be seeking to grow in godly character. Learn what it means to be a godly woman and concern yourself primarily with becoming that. Remember, just as I am telling the girls to wait for the boys to grow up into men, the boys are being taught to wait on you to grow from a girl to a woman. Are you becoming a young adult with the kind of character that the godly young men will be attracted to when the pause is lifted?

Pay attention:

Secondly, start to pay attention to and notice the young men around you. What kind of character do you see that you like and dislike? How does he treat his parents? Does he respect leaders, teachers and coaches? How does he act around his friends? How does he treat the unpopular or awkward kid? Is he serious about the things of the Lord? Is he reverent or silly when it’s time to worship? What kinds of things is he posting on social media? Is he trying to attract attention to himself or point others to God?

Now, turn all those questions around. How would a young man answer those same questions if he were paying attention to you? I think we have our work cut out for us during these pause years.  Plenty to do…  plenty to work on!

In summary, acknowledge the crush as a God-given legitimate feeling, put it on pause for a few years, starve the crush instead of feeding it, pay attention to godly characteristics in the boys around you, and get busy pursuing the kind of character in yourself that will attract the right kind of man (not boy!) at the right time.