Do You Delight In Mercy?

This evening, I decided to begin combing through the subject of the 'Sanctuary'. Little did I expect a lesson on parenting to be found as I started with the first piece of furniture of the Sanctuary: the Ark.

It is interesting to see that the seat which God sits upon, is called the Mercy Seat. Under that seat, within the Ark, is the broken Law of God.

There are many beautiful truths that jump out at you regarding who God really is, when studying the Ark and the Mercy Seat alone. The Lord called to my heart on one area pertaining to how we parent our children,; and it is this what I am about to share with you briefly today:

God's seat, is also called His 'Throne' (see Hebrews 4:16). The term 'Throne', implies that the person sitting upon it is a King, and therefore has a kingdom which he rules. The Mercy Seat is the Throne that our Father sits upon, and He, the King of Kings rules His kingdom (our lives and hearts) with mercy and His Law.

It is so comforting to know that when we come to God, the Mercy Seat is on top of the broken Law, meaning that if we have sinned, regardless of how big that sin was, the very first response we can be sure to get from our heavenly Father is mercy. God delights in Mercy (see Micah 7:18), no matter what we have done!

What is God trying to say to me and you as parents?

Just like God, mothers we have a specific royal position:

The mother is the queen of the home, and the children are her subjects. She is to rule her household wisely, in the dignity of her motherhood. Her influence in the home is to be paramount; her word, law. 

{The Adventist Home, 232.1}

As a queen of my kingdom (the hearts and lives of my children), I am to govern them with set laws of conduct for what God expects of them. However, not only am I to rule my home with these laws, but also with mercy, for the hundreds of times that they will just not seem to "get it".

It's so easy to say "Amen" now, but are we so ready and delightful to extend mercy as our first response to our children when they disobey us? How about when we have given them clear instruction on how to attend to a partcular chore in the home, but it appears that they have not been carefully listening to you, and they have to go back and do it again.....Is mercy what you are so longing to give them in that moment?

No doubt there is a time for consequences to be issued for inappropriate behaviour, but can our children feel confident that even in the midst of our disciplining they will receive mercy from our hearts?

Let it be our prayer, mothers, for God to give us the patience and mercy from the heart that will automatically spring up when the law of the home has been broken.

How Prayer and Fasting Can Change your Home

Did mothers but realize the importance of their mission, they would be much in secret prayer, presenting their children to Jesus, imploring His blessing upon them, and pleading for wisdom to discharge aright their sacred duties. Let the mother improve every opportunity to mold and fashion the disposition and habits of her children. Let her watch carefully the development of character, repressing traits that are too prominent, encouraging those that are deficient. Let her make her own life a pure and noble example to her precious charge. {The Adventist Home, 265.4}

Recently, the Lord laid upon my heart to select one day a week to pray and fast specifically for my children. If the veil could be withdrawn that separates the seen from the unseen, we would be horrified to see the unceasing and earnest efforts of the evil host in:

-tempting our children
-designing snares for their feet
-planting the seed of rebellion
-imbuing them with his spirit
-leading them to discouragement
-bringing to them sights and sounds to attract their minds and hearts to him, and the list goes on.

Yes parents, this is really what is going on in the hearts of our children moment by moment daily. So what better way to counteract the darts of the devil, than by the power of prayer and fasting?

We say that we want our young people to receive the crown of life, but are our actions, example, and parenting demonstrating that desire? Do we actually understand just what it takes to get them there?

I entreat you to start the path of, 'Intensive Care Parenting', if you haven't already. In ICU the patient is closely observed and checked in on at regular times. The physicians and nurses know that the life of the patient is in a very critical condition, and they are not to once slack on their post. Friends, this is what it means to do Intensive Care Parenting. Are not our children's souls in peril continually? Yes, just as much as ours are. Do they need regular observation, where we watch to see their steady development of character, and making sure that those weeds of the devil don't get planted there and take root? Sure they do! Remember, it was while men slept that the enemy, in the parable of the Wheat and the Tares, sowed the bad crop.

Now, don't misunderstand me, watching our children does not mean to constantly stand over them and letting them see you keeping a suspective eye over them. Our children need to know that we trust them. What I am talking about is checking in on them throughout the day in their play, at meal time, and for those of us who home school, in their lessons. When I say checking in, I mean showing an interest in what they are doing; encouraging efforts made, and suppressing evil inclinations. Watching our children, also means to be watching in prayer. I mean, being open to the Holy Spirit's voice regarding how to communicate with them in a way that will reach their hearts. It involves asking God for discernment to see what's really going on in beneath the surface. What better way to be in such in tune connection with God, than to select a day that you will use each week praying and fasting specifically for your children. There are several benefits of this:

1. Because your body won't be busy working to digest food, which draws energy from the brain, your mind will be clearer and more sensitive to the voice of God speaking to you about your children.

2. Fasting and prayer is an effectual 100% GUARANTEED weapon to discomfit and put to nought the efforts of the devil against our children

3. Letting your young people know that you are taking a specific day a week on their behalf, will forever engrave in their mind respect and love for your authority, for they will see that you are for them, and are working with them to overcome. It will also impress deeply upon their hearts the seriousness of their own soul, and the importance for them to keep it in Jesus, because if Mommy is weekly missing meals just for my soul, then that must be important, right?

4. It will be easier for you to exercise self control towards them because you have restrained your appetite, and if anybody denies the connection between appetite and temperament, well they need to try this, and see just how much calmer they become with their young people.

5.You are better equipped to administer the correct instruction and discipline to your child, and the chances of banging your head against the wall, using the same methods not getting any positive results will rapidly diminish.

Our Physiology Lesson Reading for Today

In preparing my daughter for the work of a Medical Missionary, today we read the following in the first portion of her Physiology lesson:

'Only one lease of life is granted us; and the inquiry with every one should be, “How can I invest my powers so that they may yield the greatest profit? How can I do most for the glory of God and the benefit of my fellow men?” For life is valuable only as it is used for the attainment of these ends.'

It is important that our young people understand that being healthy like Daniel isn't just so that you can be free from disease; there is an extra motivation that we are to have when following the principles of health reform, and that is so that we can glorify God. The glory of God is His character, and whatever we do to our bodies affects the mind: either our habits weakens and beclouds it, or they strengthen and make it clear to hear and obey the Lord's voice. In turn, when we make healthy choices, which give us health and empower us to be like Jesus, we become a blessing to our fellow man. Wouldn't it be a blessing to have a friend who was always revealing the character of Jesus in how they deal with you? Well, we want our children to be that friend, that student and that work colleague to others. This is what makes life valuable; this brings true happiness!


'Our first duty toward God and our fellow beings is that of self-development. Every faculty with which the Creator has endowed us should be cultivated to the highest degree of perfection, that we may be able to do the greatest amount of good of which we are capable. Hence that time is spent to good account which is used in the establishment and preservation of physical and mental health. We cannot afford to dwarf or cripple any function of body or mind. As surely as we do this, we must suffer the consequences.'

Teach your children that their mental, physical, and spiritual faculties are to be improved on daily. Discourage them from mediocrity, and just being good. Today I told my daughter that good is the enemy of great, for when you settle for good, it will hinder you from being great in Christ Jesus. We were created to 'perfect holiness in the fear of God' (see 2 Corinthians 7:1), and holiness hinges upon the physical and mental powers too. For example, if I am eating food which will harm my body, it will affect my ability to choose holiness in the midst of temptation. If I am leaving my mental powers dormant, and not shun deep and complex matters of thought, then my mind will not be sharpened enough to choose the right when severely tested. So perfecting holiness, and perfecting all my faculties, are one and the same thing.

'Every man has the opportunity, to a great extent, of making himself whatever he chooses to be. The blessings of this life, and also of the immortal state, are within his reach. He may build up a character of solid worth, gaining new strength at every step. He may advance daily in knowledge and wisdom, conscious of new delights as he progresses, adding virtue to virtue, grace to grace. His faculties will improve by use; the more wisdom he gains, the greater will be his capacity for acquiring. His intelligence, knowledge, and virtue will thus develop into greater strength and more perfect symmetry.' {Counsels on Diet and Foods, 15}

It is a law of the mind that what at first seems hard to grasp, will, by habitual effort, become easy, even second nature. For example, because my daughter started memorizing Scripture from infancy, now it is easy for her to cement a verse in her mind within a couple of minutes. Also her capacity to acquire larger amounts in a short time has increased, so where before she would memorize one verse a day, now she can take half a chapter a day.

Summary of today's reading:

 Ecc 9:10  Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.

A Christian Mother's 'Intuition' is The Holy Spirit

I would like to encourage us mothers to be intentional on a daily basis on pressing into the Savior's presence, in making it a top priority to ask God to remind us to pray for our children throughout the course of the day.

Last week, I asked my Father to do that for me, for I read how busy the devil is in continually laying snares for my children's feet.....but....I also read of the awesome power of God that is released through prayer, in particular, a mother's prayer.

It was time for my daughter to attend to her chores, while I was busy attending to mine. While I was vacuuming the carpet, I sensed a moving to pray for her while she was in the kitchen, that even though the devil is present in there with her to tempt her to possibly foolishness, negligence, allowing the mind to wander, or whatever tests come to a little girl while doing house chores, that she would hear Jesus' voice and choose Him. I also prayed that she would enjoy doing her work as unto the Lord.

Well, later on that day, I believe it was Family Worship Time, and Rachel wanted to share with me a testimony (and she is okay with me sharing this with you). She told me how when she was in the kitchen washing the dinner table, that a temptation came to her to not clean in between the flap which folds down for space, as I have instructed her in times past. In her mind, she said, Mummy wouldn't know if I cleaned it or not, for it looked clean anyway, but she felt a prompting that that wouldn't please Jesus, so she obeyed, praise God. Right then and there it came to me that THAT WAS THE SAME TIME I WAS PRAYING FOR HER. What if I had ignored that call to my heart, and cast it aside as an unnecessary thought, and something I would attend to later? The Lord saw the danger she was exposed to, and moved me to pray for her.

Parents, the future will reveal to us the countless times our prayers have turned back the tide of evil that was about to overflow our young people.

'Great responsibilities rest upon you, mothers. Although you may not stand in national councils, ... you may do a great work for God and your country. You may educate your children. You may aid them to develop characters that will not be swayed or influenced to do evil, but will sway and influence others to do right. By your fervent prayers of faith you can MOVE THE ARM THAT MOVES THE WORLD.' {The Adventist Home, 264.}


It is impossible to estimate the power of a praying mother’s influence. {Pr 196.4}

Bible Memorization and Application Series

Psalm 139 (Book & CD)

 

The Bible Memorization and Application Series, will aid you in teaching your child to love God and build strong faith in His promises and protection, by taking the Scriptures off the pages and applying them to their daily childish experiences. Scripture songs are sung by children, and each section can be colored in.

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If you buy the COMPLETE SET: $199.00 at a DISCOUNTED PRICE, for it would cost $229.00 all together if you were to buy them individually.

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Psalm 91 (Book & CD)

The Lords Prayer (Book & CD)

The Ten Commandments (Book & CD)

The Creation (Book and CD)

Psalms 23 (Book and CD)

Isaiah 53 (Book & CD)

 

The Beatitudes (Book & CD)

 

Biblical Science Educational Videos

This video series takes you and your family on a breath-taking tour of the wonders of God's creation that we fail to see with the naked eye alone. This is a powerful way to get your kids passionate about Science, and the God of Science.

There are eighteen educational chapters, which include titles such as: Thunderstorms, DNA, Seeds, Snow Crystals, and much more; pointing your child's mind to the amazing love of God, and His beautiful character traits as revealed in His handiwork.

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To access the website, just click here.

Homeschool Resource: Martin Luther

In teaching my daughter about the 1,260 time prophecy, I have found this video useful on one of the reformers.

This DVD is a historical epic film on a grand scale. It captures the life and times of the greatest figure of the Protestant Reformation with depth and clarity, while giving glimpses of the private man at the eye of the storm.

Amazing Discoveries