Starting today with some Door County Heavenly Caramel Coffee.
This past Saturday was a beautiful spring day in Wisconsin. I had to work for a few hours at my secular job.
When I came home I wanted to spend some time outside with the dogs. I have on very old Springer Spaniel and one just a year old. They both love to be outside. While I was sitting at the picnic table working on a sermon for the evening service both dogs seemed on edge. They could smell something that I could not. I noticed the younger one backed away from the tree fence we have. He came and sat by Fritz the older Spaniel. He seemed to be looking for protection. Fritz is a long way from protecting anyone anymore. So I thought.
Within about 20 seconds a huge dog appeared. It looked sick and crazed. It started to come for me. At first I wanted to see if I could help it. But the look and the snarl was more than I thought I could handle. My instinct was to protect my dogs knowing that neither one was a match for this one. But their instincts kicked in and they sensed that this was a danger to me. Both stood up and started barking and growling at the other dog from two different sides. Convinced that two growling dogs might just be more than he wanted, the other dog took off. I still think that my two would have lost if push came to shove. But what I saw was a willingness to sacrifice to protect me from evil.
1 Peter 5:8 (NKJV)
8 Be sober, be vigilant; because[ your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.
I am challenging parents today to sacrifice personal time to spend more with your kids. There is a world out there that seeks to devour our kids and entice them with the wrong things. This is a day when we are being told that "we need to take care of number one". Buy the kids and electronic game and that will occupy them. Vacation without the kids. You need time for yourself. If my dogs thought that way one may have been hurt pretty bad or I might have been attacked.
Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.
Proverbs 22:6
Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.
There is evil out there. Let's be honest about it. And our kids need to be protected from it. Are you willing to sacrifice some "me time" to make sure that your kids are protected?
Spend time with your kids. Take them to church. Love them and teach them about God. Serve with them. Enjoy them! Do this so you don't lose one. A young kid alone is know match for this world. My dogs did not care about the size of the problem. To them I was more important than anything. How about it? How important are your kids? Grand kids, Nieces and Nephews?
God bless,
Marty
No comments:
Post a Comment