Whose Children are They?

Have you given your children to God like Hannah  did with Samuel? (I Samuel 1:28)  A practical way of finding out is to examine your feelings and thoughts when another individual corrects your children.  Do you feel peeved, irritated, angry or upset? Or maybe you think: “They have no room to talk about my children. Just look at theirs.” These are good indications that your children belong to you not God and you claim full responsibility.

There are at least two reasons why so many become angry when their children are reprimanded by others.  The first is that the parents haven’t truly relinquished their children to God’s control. They see their children as solely belonging to them and resent anyone who would dare to say anything negative about them. Secondly, the faults of the children many times reveal deficiencies in the parents. I can think of different times over the past eight years when I have reacted negatively to comments or concerns of others concerning my children.  That attitude, though, only breeds resentment and anger.

If someone sees something wrong in our children and they address the issue we should be thankful that the wrong has been pointed out and it can be corrected in our children and in our own lives.  It is true that God has place the burden of rearing children on the parent’s shoulders (Deuteronomy 6:7), but if our children belong to God we should be open to admonition, encouragement and council from others.