My husband and I have two boys.  Our oldest was a busy little guy.  As an infant he HAD to be mobile.  Let me tell you, it was such a blessing when that boy was mobile on his own!  He was always pushing the limits of both his abilities and his boundaries.  That’s a dangerous combination, especially when he was walking at 8 months.

One morning I was mopping the kitchen.  I told him not to go on the tile because he could fall, as it would be wet and slippery.  As I mopped, I watched as he was drawn to test his boundaries.  He scooted closer and closer to the tile.  Then his little fingers inched along the carpet towards the tile.  I warned him again.  Stay off the tile.  That backed him away for a few minutes, but then he’d inch closer again.  Finally, he’d cross the line and I’d have to discipline him.  This boy needed clear, reinforced boundaries.

He also had a saying that my husband and I still repeat.  If he did something he shouldn’t, we’d say, “Son, you can’t do that.”  He would reply, “But I just did!”  Not only did he need clear boundaries, but he needed to know why those boundaries were there.

During this time, God opened my eyes to an aspect that has forever changed how I view children.  I was reading the parable of the good steward.  It struck me that I am a steward of my children.  They are not truly mine, but God’s.  I am to raise, oversee, and nurture them for a time.  Children are eternal beings.  I had a blink of a head start in time, but we will share eternity as mature and complete children of God.  My sons have become my brothers in Christ.  They, too, have the Holy Spirit dwelling within them, guiding them, too.

God provides a beautiful illustration of how we are to involve those that are less experienced, including them in activities and decision making.  This can apply to children or those we mentor either formally or informally.  God includes Abraham in His decision concerning Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 18.

God knew that He would destroy Sodom and Gomorrah due to their wickedness.  He wanted to teach Abraham to “direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just (v19).”  The discussion concerning Sodom and Gomorrah was a significant teaching moment. 

First, God taught Abraham to look into the entire account.  He said in verse 21 that He would “go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me.  If not, I will know.”  Did God not know what was going on in Sodom and Gomorrah?  Of course He knew!  He relayed this to teach Abraham how to determine a right and just judgment.  God taught that it was rash to react to the first complaint.  It is right to investigate both sides of a conflict.  Only then can one be just in their judgement. 

God already knew the entire story and had determined a just judgment.  Abraham only had a partial view.  God allowed Abraham to wrestle through this problem “with” Him.  At first Abraham was delightfully bold, displaying their close relationship.  In verse 25 Abraham exclaimed, “Far be it from you!  Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”  Later, when Abraham saw that the cities were destroyed, he understood why.  God involved Abraham in considering what was right and just.  Therefore, Abraham was better equipped to make right and just decisions in the future.

Take a moment right now and throughout the week to consider your children or anyone else God has put in your life to mentor and nurture.  Identify a handful of people.  How can you involve them in life activities and decision making?  Then consider the flip side.  How can you seek wisdom from those who are more experienced in life or in a certain aspect of life?  God created us to be in community.  Let us be intentional about involving one another.

Scriptures to saturate our minds this week:
Genesis 18:17-33; 19:27-29
John 13:1-17
1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
2 Thessalonians 3:6-16
1 Peter 5:2-11