No Guarantees

If you have raised children to adulthood, it is likely that they have not always turned out the way you might have imagined. Most likely, particularly if you have sought to raise godly kids who faithfully follow Jesus, you have not always agreed with their choices. When my wife and I were younger we found ourselves taking their potentially harmful decisions personally, wondering aloud where we might have gone wrong.

Now that we have more perspective, we recognize that our feeble parenting efforts, as determined as they were, did not guarantee anything. We love our children and grandchildren dearly and are so blessed these days to have wonderful times with them all, but we are quick to point to God’s gracious favour in our lives rather than taking credit through our actions as parents. The fact that they all love God and are desiring to raise their own kids to love him too is simply the greatest treasure parents could ask for.

As I read through the historical books of the Old Testament these days, I’m reminded again of how God allowed his people to make their own decisions. He was very clear to instruct them that their choices came with eternal consequences but he did not force his way on them. Throughout the books of Kings and Chronicles we read statements such as, *“Unlike David his father, he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord his God.” Or, “He did evil in the eyes of the Lord, as his predecessors had done.” *

Every so often a king would come along who would change the narrative. In 2 Kings 18:1-6 we read this introduction about Hezekiah:

*In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother’s name was Abijah, daughter of Zechariah. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father David had done. He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles… Hezekiah trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel. There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him. He held fast to the Lord and did not stop following him; he kept the commands the Lord had given Moses. *

With such a legacy it would be safe to assume that Hezekiah’s progeny would continue to follow his ways. Sadly, in 2 Kings 21 we learn that his son, Manasseh, left the faith of his father and restored the detestable practices that Hezekiah had stamped out.

This got me thinking about how our Heavenly Father must have felt in those ancient days and how he feels with his children today. Surely, he must be disappointed many, many times as he looks at our repeated failures. One could argue that with God’s perfect vision of the future he does not experience the same agony earthly parents face who can’t see the outcome. I’m not sure I would agree with that sentiment, particularly in light of what we read in Scripture where God is often assigned human emotions and longings.

God, I can never begin to thank you for your patience with me. You lavish your love even when I continually fall short of your expectations and hopes for me. Thank you for the cross that paid the way for me to enjoy forgiveness now and eternity with you one day. What a blessing!

Throughout this day: Praise God for those around you who are following Jesus with all their hearts. It may be your children or the children of others but, praise him anyway. There are no guarantees!