(Post by: Michelle Hobbs)
I have been contemplating something this Advent season. Actually, I have been thinking about it for much longer than that, but a recent Advent reading about Mary and Joseph brought it fully back to mind. Then, yesterday, we spent the day at the Ark Encounter learning about Noah, his family, the Ark, and the Flood. This solidified my need to work out the question:
What kind of parents raise a Mary or a Joseph? What kind of father was Noah that his sons (and their wives) followed his “crazy” vision from God to build a massive boat?
When I think about Mary’s reaction to being told by an angel that she would give birth to the Messiah, I am simply in awe. Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord: may it be done to me according to your word.” (Luke 1: 38).
Then, my mind turns to Joseph, who took Mary as his wife despite the fact that she was pregnant (not by him) and/or not in her right mind, claiming an immaculate conception.
These two young people had to be raised by incredibly faithful followers of God. Their parents must have led their families in such a way that Mary and Joseph were well versed in the teachings of the Torah. They must have seen a genuine love for God and His Word lived out in front of them daily. They must have been taught prophecy well to expect the coming of the Messiah.
Most importantly, they must have been raised in an atmosphere that made their hearts sensitive to the things of God and the Holy Spirit.
And Noah…Think of how Noah and his wife must have raised their three sons in a world that was so corrupt and depraved that no one, not one other person, outside Noah’s family was spared from God’s wrath! The mocking and ridicule they must have had to withstand. The constant temptation of evil they must have had to rebuke!
It makes me wonder… What Bible curriculum did they use, and where can I get my hands on it?
I say that, partly in jest, but I really have been contemplating what kind of parents these folks were and how I can learn from them.
As I have thought about it, my mind conjures up the negative picture first; what kind of parents they were not. I doubt that they were lukewarm in their faith, just giving half-hearted devotion to God. Obeying His Law and offering sacrifices only when it was convenient for them or throwing out some foxhole prayers only when things got really tough.
No, Mary and Joseph’s parents must have been completely devout, giving their full attention to the things of God and His Law. They would have taken the Shema (the most important prayer in Judaism) seriously and obeyed.
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 6: 4-9)
Noah had to have been so legitimately following God that it inspired his wife, his sons, and his daughters in law to commit themselves to the building of the Ark based solely on Noah’s report of God giving him instructions to do so. We also know that they must have developed their own love for God, since they were saved from the Flood. They were not just building the Ark because “Dad made them.”
How about you, moms and dads? Examine your faith and your parenting. Do you fall into the lukewarm camp or the fully devoted camp?
Do our kids watch our Bible gather dust as it sits on the side table because you rarely pick it up? Do they recognize that we go to church every now and then, when it’s convenient, when there is no basketball game or dance competition to get to? Do they hear us pray only when someone is really sick or in big trouble? Do they observe the TV shows and movies we watch or hear the music we listen to and quickly realize our entertainment has no regard for the Lord? Do they overhear our conversations with our friends in which we use, let’s say “colorful”, language or repeat crude jokes or maybe gossip?
The harsh truth is that this lifestyle is not going to produce a Mary or a Joseph. It is, however, going to inspire our kids to grow up and act just like us! Our actions speak louder than our words.
Now, God can certainly raise up a hero of the faith out of the poorest of upbringings. Nothing is impossible for Him! But, I’m guessing, if you have taken the time to read thus far, that you want to do your part to raise a child who loves the Lord.
The way to do that is for you, yourself, to love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. For you to write His Word on your heart. To teach your kids, diligently, about Him. To talk about your love of the Lord and His love for you morning, noon, and night.
We, as parents, must be “legit,” as my husband would say. Our kids know if we are all in or not. Only a wholehearted faith in us can raise a wholehearted faith in them!
“You are as much serving God in looking after your own children, training them up in God’s fear, minding the house, and making your household a church for God as you would be if you had been called to lead an army to battle for the Lord of Hosts.” (Charles H. Spurgeon)
The Few 
Leave a comment