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A prayer for my family
Copyright by Bob Rogers.
O God, teach me to love my family as fully and faithfully as the Heavenly Father loves Christ the Son, and as the Son loves the Father. May I honor my parents (Exodus 20:12), and may I delight in my children and grandchildren (Proverbs 23:24). Heavenly Father, please build a hedge of protection around my family, and bless the work of our hands. (Job 1:10). May we be united in love, blameless in character and wise in our decisions. May we learn to depend on You in prayer, and pass on the faith of Jesus Christ to our children, generation after generation, to the glory of God.
Ways parents can provoke children to anger
My Bible class often teaches me as much as I teach them. This week was a good example. We were studying Ephesians 6:4, which says, “Fathers, provoke not your children to wrath” (KJV), or, “Fathers, don’t stir up anger in your children” (CSB). I noted that while the plural verb translated “fathers” can also be translated “parents” (as it is in Hebrews 11:23), and some mothers can provoke children by words and actions, the reality is that fathers are more often guilty of this.
Then I asked the class to give some specific examples of how parents do this, and they came up with this list of behaviors parents should avoid:
When I taught this same lesson to inmates at a prison, they added two more ways: humiliating children in front of their friends, making promises and giving expectations and then failing to fulfill them. Would you add any other ways to this list? Feel free to leave a comment or share your story.
Bob Rogers 