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AS YOUR KIDS GROW OLDER Today's message was very brief, and I wasn't planning to post it, but some of our folks thought it was helpful, so here is the basic message . . ."Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. (Pro. 22:6)Most all parents worry at times about how their kids are turning out, because they often don't like what they see. If that's true with you or with someone you know, I have three simple tips today that might help. God's promise concerns WHEN THEY ARE OLD, not when they are 18, 25, or even 30, so if you trained them up right, give them some time and you'll see a very different picture as they grow older . . . I. DON'T STOP PRAYING "And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth." (Luke 11:5-8)We know from scripture that God's wrath on sin builds up over long periods of time, and then he pours out that wrath in judgment. Well, it works the same way with prayer. Sometimes God's answer to prayer doesn't come until your prayer vial is full, so he says DON'T STOP PRAYING! Don't let it be said in the day of judgment that an answer was on the way, but then you quit praying. Granted, some prayers will never be answered because it isn't God's will, but when you have no way of knowing, importunity is your only choice. Don't stop praying! That's Bible. You can stand on that, and one day you'll be very glad that you did. I pray for all five of my kids on a daily basis, and I'm confident that I'll continue to see favorable results. I often think of II Samuel 10:12 where Joab says to PLAY THE MAN. Someone has to BE THE ADULT! Someone has to BE THE ROCK! Someone has to BE THE ARK so the dove can have a place to land! That's me! That's you! They are just kids, and they are going to make mistakes just like we did, but let's not make mistakes with them by ceasing to pray. They're the kids; WE ARE THE ADULTS. We must not fail by ceasing to pray.II. DON'T BLAME YOUSELF Mothers are the world's worst about thinking they should have done more and that their kids would be so much more spiritual had they done more. So, they blame themselves instead of blaming the ones who deserve the blame: THE KIDS!Who was to blame in Eden, the Parent or the kids? Did God mope around wishing that he had done more or that he should have taught Adam and Eve differently? No, he knew full well that there would have been no problem, if they had obeyed him. They did NOT obey him, so they were to blame. Simple as that. He trained them right, but they disobeyed. Period. Look at what we are told in Joshua 11:15: "As the LORD commanded Moses his servant, so did Moses command Joshua, and so did Joshua; he left nothing undone of all that the LORD commanded Moses."The only time to think that you didn't do enough is when you didn't do all that God commanded, you didn't cover the basics in basic training. If you did cover the basics as God commanded, then you have clean hands and you should rejoice in that. The rest will take time, but YOUR part is done. God never told you to micro-manage their lives. If you laid a good foundation, it is their job to build upon it, and that takes time. Just keep praying, help when asked, and don't blame yourself for THEIR mistakes. God wasn't to blame for Adam and Eve's errors, and you probably aren't to blame for your kid's errors, not if you taught them the basics about fearing and obeying God and loving your neighbor. It's not that complicated, unless THEY have complicated it with bad choices. Don't blame yourself. That will only make things worse, and it won't help the kids.III. DON'T CONFUSE GOD'S WILL WITH YOUR WILL God's will is very simple, unless you try to confuse it with your will. Look at what God said about his friend Abraham in Genesis 18:19: "For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him." Do you see that? God's will was for Abraham's to command his children in such a way that they would do two things: JUSTICE and JUDGMENT. That's it. That's called BASIC TRAINING. When that is done right, everything else falls into place with time. He didn't tell Abraham to micro-manage anyone's life, and he hasn't told us to do so.Many Christian parents are hurt because their kids didn't become preachers or wives of missionaries and such. Some are hurt because their sons have no desire to take over the family business or their daughters won't use the same educational methods that they used. Careful! That's YOUR will, but not necessarily God's will. Homeschooling is not the only way to properly educate children, and preaching is not the only way to serve God. We must build the basic foundational blocks into them, but then leave the rest to God. I must not confuse God's will with my will. We do the training, but God does the calling. We bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Eph. 6:4), but it is the Lord himself who directs the details of their lives and specifically leads by his Spirit. Why is it that we can trust God in so many things, yet not in this?As a parent, I must back away and allow my kids to grow older and learn the way of God more perfectly, and when they are old, they will not depart from it. That is my hope and joy, and I trust it is yours as well.