Proverbs 6:20-23 – “your father’s command, your mother’s teaching … bind them to your heart”
If you’re like me when I was young, you’ve probably heard your parents say “if I told you once, I’ve told you a thousand times” or “how many times do I have to say _____________.” As a parent, I hear myself saying those same things to my children. We still seldom learn lessons by hearing them once. God is probably nodding in agreement as you read this. As much as we don’t like being told what to do and as much as we probably don’t agree or respect everything our parents told us, they are things that need to be taken to heart. It’s not “because they said so,” but because they are valuable to life. They are words that guide, advise, protect, warn, rebuke, correct, and make us aware. The imagery used in verse 23 is of finding your way on a darken path in the woods during the night. Their commands and teachings and disciplines are like flashlights. They become a great tool to find the best route to life. The first of the 10 great commandments which came with a promise was to obey and honor your parents (Exodus 20:12). The promise was that they would receive a long life in the land that was being given to the nation. The Apostle Paul in Ephesians 6:1 says it is because it pleases the Lord to obey our parents. God has given parents the responsibility of guiding their children. Parents will do well when they guide with God’s Word. We may no longer be under the care and command of our parents but that doesn’t mean that their teachings aren’t to be heeded. Their instructions were to be bound to our hearts since we were children. God says that it is good for your heart to continue to remember and to follow the guidance you once learned from your parents. It’s especially good to draw from their wisdom as adults if they are still around to share. It’s often too late when we realize the valuableness of their message. What did they say to you that has stuck with you for so many years later?
Prayer Starter: Heavenly Father, thank You for giving me much wisdom when I asked for it. Thank You for giving me Your Word to guide, advise, protect, warn, rebuke, correct, and make me aware about important things in life. Heavenly Father, I also thank You for the parents that I have/had. Even if they were not the greatest parents and even though they may have not had a relationship with You, there are a few things that they have said or done that have guided me well. Help me to honor my parents by focusing on their good teachings. I do ask for Your blessings as I know it pleases You that I honor them and it helps me to be a better parent in return. Help me be a good spiritual father or mother to “sons and daughters” in my life so that my teachings would be valuable for them to bind to their hearts and guide them with the truth.
You’re reading a devotion from the Easter Devotional Plan 2016. For the rest of the 40 day plan, visit here.