With the mighty deeds of the Lord God I will come;
I will remind them of Your righteousness, Yours alone.
O God, from my youth You have taught me,
and I still proclaim Your wondrous deeds.
So even to old age and gray hairs,
O God, do not forsake me,
until I proclaim Your might to another generation,
Your power to all those to come.
Psalms 71:16-18
One of the biggest roles that we are charged with, especially when we become parents, is to raise up the next generation of God’s children in His name. We are supposed to be teaching them how to live by God’s rules and to follow Him. For many of our older children (school age and beyond) that means attending a church with a good youth group and youth activities. These groups can be fundamental in growing our youth into godly young adults. Our youth are one of the greatest things that a church can invest in.
God is with us from the time we are born. The first teachers He gives us is our parents. They are the first ones to teach us about God and Jesus. Then as we grow up, we are introduced to the members of the church we attend: ministers, Sunday School teachers, peers, and other adults. As a group we learn about God and pass on the teachings of God from the older to the younger generation. The older generation proclaims the greatness of God and pass these proclamations on to the younger generation.
The glory of young men is their strength, and the honor of old men is their gray hair.
Proverbs 20:29
God is glorified when we pass our knowledge of Him and Jesus on to the younger generation that are being raised in the church. It is an honor to be able to lead the younger generation into the ranks of God’s children. The younger generation brings strength and vigor to our churches. The older generation brings wisdom. The older generation guides the younger generation as they take their rightful place in God’s family.
A solid and good children’s program and youth group is one of the reasons my husband and I chose to attend the church we attend today. We have seen many of the youth leave our church and be productive both for God and our country. The leaders of the children and the youth are great, and they have our children’s best interest at heart—just as parents do for their own.
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Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the godly people You have put in our family’s life. In today’s world it takes more than a parent’s positive influence to raise a child. Putting godly examples in front of our children helps us to guide our children in the way that You would have them go. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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Laura, thank you for sharing. I believe as you do, it is an honor to raise “up the next generation of God’s children in His Name.” I also agree that a good, solid children’s and youth program is so important. I, too, am thankful for the faithful workers in our church who are “proclaiming His might to another generation” (including my grands.)
such important points, laura! a privilege to parent (and grand-parent) as well as speak the Truth into the lives of other children we are blessed to have in our lives…neighbor kids, friends’ children, church family kids! <3