Loving Your Children -- Part III

Shielding Them

I am writing today on a topic that probably wouldn’t have come up this soon had it not been for the events that occurred on Monday, April, 16, 2007. It is hard to overlook this grave event and go on to any other topic. No, I am not going to write about the terribleness of what happened, but I am going to give my thoughts on how we as mothers and grandmothers can shield our children and grandchildren from the culture in which we live. Just as Jesus longed to gather the children in Jerusalem together “as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings” (Matthew 6:37), we need to gather our children and protect them from the wickedness of our culture!

I am sure that some of you are wondering how I am going to suggest that you shield your children from these things. Well, let me assure you that I am well aware that we cannot lock our kids or ourselves up in a room and throw away the key! I am suggesting, however, that we can do things that will give them the tools to be able to respond to events of this nature that WILL occur during their lifetimes. And if my predictions are correct, as I look back over the 59 years that I have been in this world, it appears to me that these events will occur with more and more frequency as we move along through this century!

First of all, don’t let your children have free reign over the television or computer! They don’t need to see any of the coverage of such events! (As far as that goes, we moms and grandmas don’t need to see all that much of the coverage either. Does it encourage or edify us to see all the details that the media thrusts upon us without warning? Does it cause us to think about things that are pure and honorable and lovely? Philippians 4:8) At this point, you might react with a comment about living in “the real world” and how children need to know what goes on in their world. I will respond with a question: Who determines what the real world is for your children? God’s Word says that “God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7) So if your children have fear, it is not from God. And to let them see any of the coverage of this type of event on the television (or to let them watch programming of any kind that instills fear) cannot be of God! So remember, when your friends or others say something about how maimed your children are going to be socially if they don’t know what is going on in the “real world”, let them know that the “real world” for your children is the one that God has helped you establish in your home through the guidance of His Word. And how do I know so much about this argument? It was used many times on our family as we raised our children and protected them from so many of the pitfalls that were prevalent during the ‘80’s and the ‘90’s.
I guess I won’t get to a second point today as I don’t want anyone to fall asleep reading when I know that many of you must work hard to carve out precious time to check on what is new on the computer. I will try to get back to this topic soon. Have a great week and don’t forget to pray for your children.