God's Earthly Reward to us is our Children

Oh, where to begin! God gave us many bible verses about children. This verse is one I really like because it leaves no room for us to believe anything except God thinks children are a gift. Ps. 127:3 Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from him! Even one of the Ten Commandments was about parents and their children, Ex.20:12 Honor your father and your mother that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. This seems to be a stern warning about respect! Children have to be taught respect from an early age; they watch their parents being respectful and we give them guidance about what respect is. Children are like little sponges, they soak up everything around them, whether good or bad. Prov.29:15 The rod and reproof give wisdom, but a child left to himself, brings shame to his mother. It seems as if there is a lot of controversy about spanking a child. Well, this previous verse leaves no doubt about spanking. When I see an unruly child, I immediately think the parent is at fault not the child. It is your duty as a parent to set boundaries for your children and to enforce them in a consistent manner. You will be held accountable, before a Holy God. Jesus loved children. Matt.19:14-15 then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples, rebuked the people, but Jesus said, "Let the little children, come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven." And he laid his hands on them and went away. The end result of good parenting is in, Prov.22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it. God is good, he even laid out parenting guidelines for us!!!