A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son, grief to his mother. ~Proverbs 10:1
Listen to your father who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old. Buy the truth and do not sell it; get wisdom, discipline and understanding. The father of a righteous child has great joy. He who has a wise child delights in him. May your father and mother be glad. May she who gave you birth rejoice! ~Proverbs 23:22-25
While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, His mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to Him. Someone told Him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to You.” He Replied to him, “Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?” Pointing to His disciples, He said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the Will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.” ~Matthew 12:46-50
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called “Children of God!” And that is what we are!” ~1 John 3:1A
I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. ~3 John: 4
I can’t imagine there being any greater joy on earth than to know that the entire biological family is on the same page, walking with the Lord and growing together spiritually. Kathy and I do not know this joy yet, completely, but we pray for it daily. We had it when the kids were young. We all went on vacations together and did activities together. We read stories together, had similar tastes in food and entertainment.
Of course, looking back on it now, as the parents, we have to admit that we played an influential role in all those choices so, of course, we, as the parents enjoyed it all immensely! It was sad to lose that sense of harmony as the kids peeled away, one by one, into their own interests. Some of that we didn’t approve of at all. And at times we experienced outright rebellion against what Kathy, and I, had been trying to create for our home.
Some of it was expected as a natural part of their growing up, but some added grief came as we knew that we were losing influence to others outside of our home. We are grateful that our family still enjoys getting together, even though we have our differences. But we also hear of families who dread the Thanksgiving gathering for fear of the conversation turning to one of the two “third rails” of conversation today, religion and politics.
How sad that these creations of man have so badly damaged the original unit that God created for us to experience unconditional love, encouragement and acceptance. It’s hard to experience rifts in the family. Imagine how hard it must be for those who had a dysfunctional or nonexistent family to begin with. They have never known what we at least knew, at the beginning. On our part, even now, when we hear about how well some of the families of our friends have fared (better than how we think we did), we get a pang of grief, wishing things had gone differently for us.
Our hope always lies in the fact that the last chapter has not yet been written and of course, “but God.” “The father of a righteous child has great joy. He who has a wise child delights in him.” Our heavenly Father rejoices when His children walk in His ways. When Jesus came, He redefined family. “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the Will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.”
Family, for Him, was no longer biological. Instead, it became defined by those who lived on the same page as Him, sharing an interest in obeying the Father in heaven. When we obey, we are not only His brother or sister, but we become a child of God our Father Himself. God’s family is different than our earthly one. In Christ, there is always the opportunity for the family to grow, to come together and be united through our obedience to our Heavenly Father. When we do that for Him, He is so pleased.
“A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son, grief to his mother.” When we sew discord in the family, or seek our own way, it brings grief to all. We can understand that in the seen world, but it happens in the unseen one also. God Himself could say: “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” That’s what He wants for us, His truth, His family, His good and perfect Will to be done on earth, by His family, as it is and will be in heaven.
Prayer: Father, I want to be wise and bring joy to your heart. Thank you for loving me like a Father, better than any earthly father can. Help me Lord, to stay on the same page with You. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Song: Plenty of Room in the Family
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