The Name (Teach Your Children)

"Hear O Israel:
the LORD our God, the LORD is one."

this is who He is. He is the One who is faithfully present. the One who is always there. the One who will always be ready to defend. He is, He is, He is. depend on Him. trust in Him. rely on Him. His Name is His character.

"and you shall love the LORD your God will all your heart, with all your soul and with all your strength."

be sincere. recognise what He has done for you and love Him for it. as we do that, our choices better reflect His character being developed in us. in other words, we choose His way over our own way more and more.

"Diligently teach your children"

we all know children learn best by example. but that doesn't mean we shouldn't teach--actively tell, show, instruct them in how to live. i've been very conscious of this as of late. my children don't understand what godly character is...how can they? there have been instances where i have been angry with them for doing something and i was tempted to (justifiably) yell at them. but then i thought, they need to learn here...it is time to diligently teach them, not to scream at them.

it is our job to teach our children well.

"talk about them when you are at home, when you walk about, when you lie down and when you get up"

just as we are to be sincere in what we believe, we should be sincere in what we teach. lesson time is great...but our best teaching time is when it comes out naturally in the course of day to day life.

what a great honor and priviledge it is to be parents! stewards of the greatest gift of all. let's take it seriously.