Devotions 10-08-06

Prov 10:1
"A wise son makes a father glad but a foolish son is a grief to his mother."

It is easy to understand why a wise son makes a father glad. Every man wants his son to do as well as he has done or better. Also there is hope that his son will take care of him in his old age. But when his son is foolish there is generally a process and the father works with his son whom he loves and tries to get him to turn from his foolish ways.

This is very emotional for a father. He tries to encourage his son but eventually many fathers get angry and try to force their son to change. When nothing works and he is still foolish the father lets his son alone and realizes he has failed. He may still love his son but there is nothing more to do but to pray. He quits trying to help or to change his son and waits on God to do what he could not do. Fathers seem to have less emotional strength than mothers. Maybe they are more involved in work and providing for the family and it is to large of a drain on them emotionally.

The mother will never let go of her son and will tolerate much more of his foolishness and will continue to seek to help him to change. She then becomes a grieving mother and her joy in life fades from her as she sees her son following ways she did not teach him.

What should I learn from this. I must be very attentive to my children to teach the wise way to live life. I must seek to be a wise man before them. Not only wise but more important to be godly. It is God who gives wisdom and understanding. I must seek to pray for them all the days of my life and help them to rear their children to be wise and not foolish. Solomon in the book of Proverbs gives a lot of instructions on how to rear wise children. Thank You Lord for the wisdom you have given my children and their mates. Lord, I Praise You beyond words.