Arrows in the hands of a warrior!

The bible records that our children are “like arrows in the hands of a warrior” (Psalms 127:4). Arrows in the hands of a warrior are useless if, 1. They are used for the wrong reasons2. They are not sharpened3. The warrior lacks the skill to direct themImagine using an arrow as a fork to eat your food or using an arrow to show directions on the road. This is what happens when we force our children to pursue goals not in line with God’s call on their lives. They are useful but lack accomplishment. That is, an arrow as a fork is useful in getting food to my mouth or to show direction but doesn’t accomplish anything because it is not used for its primary purpose which is to strike down the enemy.Look around and you will see a lot of people feeling utterly exhausted and with no passion in life. They are living but yet not living. Why? They have ended up becoming direction signs than weapons to reckon with.The lack of sharpening happens when we, parents, understand and realize the calling of God but despise or discourage them from exercising it because of our selfish ambitions and plans for our children. We need to ask ourselves how many times we have encouraged our children to give priority to study, to expound and to apply the scriptures in their life. Only this will help them lead a life of example to others (1 Timothy 4:12,13). Shouldn’t that be our desire, that our children are role models to others?Thirdly, arrows become ineffective when the warrior is not skilled and sends them in the wrong direction. Often this happens, when parents do not have the patience nor inclination to ask God for guidance on how to bring up their child in accordance to the will of God. Parents play a very crucial role in directing their children to God. Judges 2:10 mentions a generation that did not know their God. This lack of knowledge led them to be a nation that was oppressed by the very people whose hearts melted in fear before their parents in Joshua 5:1. The reason? The arrows were flying but they were flying in the wrong direction. The enemy was not scared nor were the people living a life of victory because the warriors lost their sense of direction. This is what happens if we, as parents, do not acquire guidance from the Lord on how to bring up our children. There is no point in searching the internet, watching Dr. Phil or reading all the books you can get, if you do not seek the wisdom of God to parent your child. In many ways parenting can be akin to a king ruling a country. Rule in love and wisdom from God and you will never have to repent or be ashamed of your child. Rule with an iron fist and from selfish ambition and you will see them rebel just as the people of Israel rebelled against the rule of Rehoboam, the son of Solomon. We need to pray to God just like King Solomon did and ask Him for the skills to direct our arrows in the right direction.Finally to conclude, we need to understand that the arrows are our property but we do not determine their purpose because their purpose was already determined by the one who fashioned them (Psalms 139:13-17, Jeremiah 1:5). SHALOM