But this got me thinking ... first of all, does this boy and his family go to church? And if so, what type of look does he have on his face when he walks through the doors of the church? Does he show the same excitement? Does he have posters of Jesus on the walls of his bedroom? If Jesus were to return today, what look would be on this boys face?
I am guessing this boy to be about five or six years old, give or take a couple of years either way. How did this boy become so excited about Brutus Buckeye? Chances are, he wasn't born in Michigan, and chances are that someone close to him, most likely a parent, is a Buckeye fan and shared that love for The Ohio State Buckeyes with the child.
Are we showing our own children love and excitement for Jesus? Are we reading them the Bible, and are we telling them just how great Jesus is? Not only are we telling them, but are we showing them through example? If not, my question for you is simple ... WHY NOT?
"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." ... Proverbs 22:6 (KJV).
I am definitely no expert on raising children. I've worked with youth groups before, but it's not the same as being a parent.
Allow me to share an illustration for you. About 20 something years ago, I was the teacher of a 5th grade Royal Ambassadors class in a Baptist Church in Georgia. I had 24 boys in that class. The backgrounds on those kids varied, but I was able to split the boys (in my mind) by breaking them into 3 groups. It turns out that out of the 24, eight of them went to public schools. Eight of them went to a Christian school. And the final eight were homeschooled. The behavior of the 8 from public schools were all very similar to one another. The Christian school kids were still a handful, but had a little bit better of a behavior pattern. But what amazed me the most was the fact that the eight homeschooled children were the easiest to teach and were not disruptive in any manner whatsoever. I am not sharing this to promote homeschooling your children. That is not what I got out of it. What I DID get out of it was the fact that the homeschooled kids in that group spent a TON of time with their parents, both with their moms AND their dads! The lesson I learned from the experience is that to raise a child correctly, they MUST have parents that will spend time with them in a positive environment.
I'd also like to share one more story which occurred just a few weeks ago. I got out of my car in the parking lot of Cypress Wesleyan Church in Galloway, Ohio. I was walking towards the door when I noticed a lady (who appeared to be the mom), along with a girl who appeared to be about the same age as the boy pictured above, so my guess is 5 or 6 years old. They were walking hand in hand, when the girl looked up at the mom and said, "Mommy, I can't wait to learn more about Jesus today!" The girl started skipping, broke free from her mom and took off running for the doors to the church! That girl was definitely excited about Jesus! To this, I want to thank Cypress Wesleyan Church, Kathy George, the Director of Children's Ministries, and all the volunteers that help share that type of excitement about Jesus with these children!
Perhaps you are on fire for Jesus, but are single, or maybe even married, but don't have children of your own. I encourage you to ask at church if there are opportunities to work with the children. Share the love of Jesus! Or perhaps you may not be called to serve in this manner. Do you love sports? If so, volunteer to be a local little league coach, or Boy Scout / Girl Scout leader. Find something you love, spend time with children, and let them see the Lord's love through you!
We are all in this together, folks! We can spend every minute of every day praying for our younger generations, but God isn't going to hear our requests unless we get into action and do something about it!
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