“We must not love with word or speech, but with truth and action.”<\/p>\n
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The Intentional Encourager<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0In our chapter, Priscilla was amazed that a very\u00a0young 22-year-old Solomon – when given the opportunity to gain health, wealth, prosperity, and prestige – asked God simply for WISDOM to lead the people he was made king over.\u00a0 This amazed me as well.\u00a0 I have 4 children ranging in age from 17-26 and if given the opportunity to gain health, wealth, and prosperity<\/em>\u00a0OR<\/em> wisdom – my crowd would certainly choose health, wealth, and prosperity.\u00a0What child this age today<\/em>\u00a0wouldn’t?\u00a0 Once again, like Priscilla, my initial thoughts were the same – King David certainly must have raised his child the right\u00a0<\/em>way ~ a way different from what I raised my own.\u00a0 Do you see the similarities of this situation with times today?\u00a0 They really aren’t any different.\u00a0 We all have character defects or deficiencies, we all make errors in judgement and King David did as well.\u00a0 Priscilla says, ‘He made some colossal mistakes in both his personal life and his parenting’; as we all have done and continue to do.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0‘My son Solomon – God has chosen him alone – is young and inexperienced. The task is great, because this palatial structure is not for man but for the Lord God.’\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>Chronicles 29:1-2<\/p>\n Solomon has been\u00a0instructed to build God’s temple – did you get that?\u00a0 God’s temple!\u00a0 That is HUGE! …..and although he recognizes that his son is “young and inexperienced”, he also realizes that he is the chosen one.\u00a0 That God chose Solomon to be king, to lead his people, to get His temple built.\u00a0 Now it is his job to support, encourage, and most of all BELIEVE and have faith in his son to accomplish this undertaking. David does just that.<\/p>\n Like most parents, I have high expectations for my son and daughters.\u00a0 I want them to have wisdom, health, wealth, prestige and all the blessings God promises in His word.\u00a0 Unfortunately there have been many choices made by my children that were not in their best interest, that go against\u00a0God’s instruction\u00a0– that have caused me to lose faith in them, that have caused me to stop believing in them in many areas.\u00a0 Shame on me.\u00a0\u00a0 I\u00a0certainly was\u00a0not perfect growing up and only in the last 4-5 years have built a relationship with Jesus Christ that has given me the desire and conviction to make my life’s decisions based on my Heavenly\u00a0Father’s desires, the desires found in His word.\u00a0 God didn’t give up on me.\u00a0 God believed in me.\u00a0 However, it remains\u00a0very hard difficult to give my children that same\u00a0gift (virtually impossible! – although we know with God all things are possible!)<\/p>\n As God’s child,\u00a0\u00a0He was with me every step of the way growing up.\u00a0 I know this because I should have been a ‘street kid’.\u00a0 As a teenager my brother and I were being raised by my father.\u00a0 He left our house to move in with his girlfriend and we had free reign.\u00a0 Our dad wasn’t there giving us parental guidance, he wasn’t cooking for us or taking care of us.\u00a0 I remember living in that mobile home (our home), just me and my brother (who was only 18 months younger than me) wanting to take care of him. There was no desire to ‘party’ as many teenagers do today. There was no desire to stay out until all hours or to do drugs or drink. God delivered\u00a0us from what could have been a disastrous young adulthood.\u00a0 He gave\u00a0us wisdom.<\/p>\n The lesson being taught to us today is that we MUST be INTENTIONAL (and we have heard this word throughout many chapters n our study) with our children.\u00a0 We must INTENTIONALLY encourage them, we must INTENTIONALLY provide them support (and I’m not talking about financial support or treasures), we must INTENTIONALLY believe in them.\u00a0 We have to trust that our Heavenly Father has them – after all, they are His children.\u00a0 We are simply here to give them earthly guidance and support until such day that they are reunited with their Father in heaven.\u00a0 They are on loan to us.\u00a0 We must never give up providing them with the spiritual food they need to get to know their daddy.\u00a0 We must believe that they are going to do GREAT things in the course of their lives, that they too will build a relationship with God that will allow them to give their children what David did to Solomon.\u00a0 This is a hard task ladies – a tough, tough task.\u00a0 It is for me anyway – maybe it’s easier for you guys.\u00a0 Perhaps you are in a different place in your life than I am in mine.\u00a0 However, the lesson remains the same.\u00a0 BE INTENTIONAL with your children.\u00a0 As we have read in the past chapters, our jobs as parents don’t end when our children become adults.\u00a0 Even with our grown children we must be INTENTIONAL in our actions towards them and continue to ‘train them up’ in the ways of the Lord. We must believe in them, encourage them, and support them – Intentionally. What incredible life gifts for them!<\/p>\n Let’s Pray:<\/strong><\/p>\n Father, work in our lives.\u00a0\u00a0 Work in my heart Lord\u00a0and in the heart of every\u00a0reader here.\u00a0 Allow us to become convicted and determined to be INTENTIONAL with our children AND the children of this world – those\u00a0in our churches, in our communities, in\u00a0 other cities and countries we visit.\u00a0 Especially those father that do not have a parental figure in their lives.\u00a0 \u00a0You know every situation\u00a0Father – for every parent and every child.\u00a0 Provide us with the wisdom, guidance, and gentle nudges OR large pushes necessary to give our children the gift of belief in them, of encouragement, and the desire to continue spiritually feeding them regardless of where they are today in their personal lives.\u00a0 May we be more like David in our daily walk with our children.<\/p>\n Your Assignment:<\/strong><\/p>\n List some of the immature actions and temperaments in your children that may discourage you.\u00a0 Keep this list in a place where you can always be reminded to pray regarding them, and consider who you can enlist to encourage your child in these areas (along side of you).\u00a0 Carefully consider how you can make the overarching tone of your relationship with your child one of encouragement.\u00a0 Please comment and let us know how we can pray for you in your walk, attempting to be more like David with Solomon.\u00a0 or God with us.<\/p>\n [My note:\u00a0 It is very difficult for me personally, psychologically, to see the roses over the thorns many times with my children.\u00a0 This prohibits me from giving them the encouragement that I need to.\u00a0 Especially with my son, who is covered in thorns.\u00a0 This lesson has challenged me.\u00a0 I will be praying for each of you in your own lives and request you cover my family\u00a0in yours.\u00a0Thank you for this.]__________________<\/p>\n Don’t forget, on October 1st<\/strong>, we will begin our brand new Online Bible Study, right here, entitled “Winning Him Without Words” by Lynn Donovan and Dineen Miller.\u00a0 If you are in an unequally spiritual marriage, you won’t want to miss this study!!\u00a0 It is AMAZING! (as a personal note, I have read this book – I have communicated with these authors over the past year and they are amazing.\u00a0 Their personal stories changed my life.\u00a0 Their words confirmed what my own pastor said when he counseled me in my own marriage.\u00a0 I pray that you will join us for this study as well!)<\/p>\n To sign up for this study, please send an email to:\u00a0 Womens@GirlfriendsCoffeeHour.com and we will send you all the details you need to get started!<\/p>\n Don\u2019t forget to stop by Craig\u2019s blog to see what the guys are up to with The Resolution for Men.<\/p>\n