Scripture: Samuel’s sons did not walk in his ways. They turned aside after dishonest gain and accepted bribes and perverted justice. 1 Samuel 8:3
How good it is to be back in the states. I had hoped to keep up with my blog while overseas, but I made some choices that did not allow me to continue posting blogs and do all the other things that I needed to do. But now that I no longer have to be focused as a Navy Chaplain I should be able to return to posting thoughts on a more regular basis. Of course that may change again because as many of you may know we are expecting a little one to join our family anytime now —I’ll keep you posted and of course I will share photos.
As I contemplate the arrival of Melody and having spent an entire weekend getting reconnected with Matthew I was struck by the scripture passage I quoted above. A few verses prior the following description was provided about Samuel, “Samuel gave solid leadership to Israel his entire life.” Some other descriptions of Samuel – He prepared Israel to battle the Philistines and every battle he led them in they won; his counsel that he offered to others was sought after and he was always on the mark; God confided in Samuel (now that’s a really big deal); and the people knew that Samuel was God’s man.
How is it possible that a man this respected and this close to God could produce such bad fruit? The consequences were that the people lost hope in God and thus requested that they be placed under the leadership of a king. You think taxes, gas prices and war are tough now – well thank Samuel’s sons. As I consider this situation I had two reactions:
One – It just goes to show that our God desires to have a very personal relationship with each person. Just because I am close to God and I plan to grow closer to God throughout my life I cannot assume that Matthew and Melody will have the same respect and reverence for God that I have. I also cannot assume that just because I teach them that they matter to God, that God loves them and has created them with a special and unique purpose, that Matthew and Melody will receive that teaching. God created us with choice and we do have a choice of accepting or rejecting Him .
Two – What good does it do to “advance” God’s Kingdom but lose my family along the way? Picture in your mind the 4X100 relay race. The sprinters are in the blocks. The gun sounds and the first sprinter runs like a lion is chasing him. He passes the baton to the second sprinter, they now have a 100th of second lead, he passes the baton to the next sprinter and the lead has increased to almost a ½ second, he passes the baton to the final runner, but the baton slips through his fingers and falls to the track. They scramble to pick-up the fallen baton, but the damage is done, the team goes from first to last.
While Samuel provided pastoral and military leadership to Israel, the Philistines were subdued, the cities the Philistines had captured were returned to Israel and peace was made with the Amorites. I would argue that God’s Kingdom had been incredibly advanced. Yet, soon after Saul is anointed king, the Amorites and the Philistines start their attacks again. While Samuel was busy pointing people to God, while he was busy teaching people the need to trust God, his own children were running in the opposite direction. All the years of hard work and dedication were lost.
For some reason Samuel’s sons did not receive the baton cleanly and as a result the people become fed-up and disheartened and they demanded a king. How are you doing at passing batons to your children and grandchildren? Was the baton passed cleanly to you? Are you in danger of doing such incredible work for your church, your community, and your business that you are missing the privilege of leading your children?
Many of you know that I did not receive the baton cleanly from my parents either. I grew-up in a home that was filled with alcohol, adultery and abuse. My parents never divorced, but they truth is for my entire life they were never married either. They were legally married, but they did not live as husband and wife the way God intended or the way children needed. Growing-up my heart longed for a happy and healthy home. God has blessed me with a wonderful person to begin to create that possibility with. Jackie and I are happily married and we are blessed with two wonderful children (one is certainly on the way). I am committed to passing on the baton safely to Matthew and Melody, but truthfully I am not satisfied with just passing that baton to them. I feel called and compelled to equip and empower thousands of other families to do the same for their children. It is because of that sense of calling that I have started two organizations – one is called Shoulder 2 Shoulder and the other is called StayMarried4Ever.
Shoulder 2 Shoulder aligned with Operation Military Family is a strategic process of equipping churches to stand alongside our military families and families in general to help families move from survival to significance.
Stay Married4Ever will be a platform in which I will offer monthly coaching to groups of families who desire to finish well. The ultimate goal of Stay Married 4ever is to transform the 50% divorce rate to 20%.
To learn more about these organizations let me encourage you to check out the websites at www.staymarried4ever.com or www.shoulder2shouldercoaching.com. I have also started another blog site called www.staymarried4ever.wordpress.com. I hope you will start checking this blog out as well.
Wonderful post and glad you are back!!
Children are extremely influenced by their parents and often in what they don’t hear but see. I’ve been thinking lately about generational sin – how things are passed down from one generation to another – you see this in the OT and you see it today. However, that trending is broken in Christ. and as you said each one is to have a personal relationship – yet you also see people really living off of someone else’s faith and not their own.
You made a good point – many people get wrapped up in helping others they neglect the souls who were given to them to teach and to raise. We need more attention on caring for those we have in our home.
Rachel
Hi Rachel,
It is good to be back. Now if I could just get reconnect to PST. The generational “Crud” is a big motivator for me. My passion is to change my family tree. My parents did the best with what they had and with who they were, but they also had many limitations that kept them from experiencing who they really were and who God really intended for them to be. I think those childhood, adolescents pains are really what drives me to invest so heavily in helping families and couples create strong, healthy and resilient families.
By the way I have created some new resources
http://www.staymarried4ever.com and
http://www.staymarried4ever.wordpress.com
Have a blessed day.
Hi – I checked out your sites – excellent. I look forward to reading what you have to say on the topic – it is one that is in great need of truth, deliverance and hope for many people.
Rachel