By David ReayTuesday 13 Sep 2016LifeWords DevotionalsFaithReading Time: 0 minutes
Transcript:
Read Colossians 3:20-21
20 Children, do what your parents tell you. This delights the Master no end.
21 Parents, don’t come down too hard on your children or you’ll crush their spirits.
(THE MESSAGE)
The writer John Powell says that we are the products of those who loved us and who failed to love us. None of us grew up in perfect homes. Those who claim perfection for their childhood are mistaken. We were all raised by imperfect parents and were ourselves imperfect children and those who became parents in time were likewise imperfect. So we did not always act in accordance with our text whether parents or children.
And yet we have to own our raw material. We can’t demand we start again as either children or parents. Some had pretty awful early experiences; others had relatively positive early experiences. In either case, we are who we are because we are largely shaped by them.
This might sound very grim, as if we can’t escape our past, as if our lives are predetermined by our parents. But through the grace of God we can grow beyond these limitations. We can use the good and not-so-good elements of our early life to help us grow in Jesus. Our raw material might be very raw indeed, but God can make something wonderful out of it.
In time, we become the product of the God who loves us without imperfections.
Blessings
David Reay