Lord’s Day, Vol. 5 No. 35

Children Are God’s Gifts

 Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. (Psalm 127:3)

We acknowledge before God, His gracious gift of children to every parent represented in our congregation. If God had not given, we would not have received. Therefore, Psalm 127:3 is a statement of grateful tribute to the Giver of children entrusted to parents’ nurture and care.

Children are God’s precious gifts to parents, an inheritance from the LORD. Children are a part of God’s treasury entrusted to parents. The fruit of the womb is not a “fruit of chance”, but God’s special blessings upon parents. It is a token of God’s love and kindness. Spurgeon rightly noted, “He gives children, not as a penalty nor as a burden, but as a favour.”

Let us for a moment consider the nurturing timeframe of a child. From the time the baby is conceived in the mother’s womb till the baby’s first cry. The time when the infant is nurtured to become a toddler, growing to become a school-going child, teenager, youth and then finally a young adult.

The nurture of our children is an expression of our grateful thanks to God for entrusting their young lives into our hands. We are to love and care for them as God has loved and cared for us, with unconditional and sacrificial love.

One pastor observes well, “The family is the one environment where your devotion, faithfulness and consistency matter most. It’s where the most are at stake. It’s where the greatest blessings can be realized.”

There is simply no greater blessing than raising our children in a way that honours God, and then seeing them grow up to honour God with their own lives.”

The working mother phenomenon is all too common today where both husbands and wives work and children are left in the care of child-care centres and maids and grandparents. Even more sad in today’s business world is that work often means going for business trips days on end. Parents are therefore left with little time to nurture and train up the child in the way he should go.

We are being reminded that the sacred task of training the next generation is decidedly important and urgent yet we realize also it is most neglected. There is no substitute for the dedication and devotion given to child training. The process requires much patience and love on the part of parents.

The training is focused. It is in the knowledge of the Bible, in the habits of prayer – the child is taught at a young age to pray, to develop dependence not on himself but in God, the habits of diligence and obedience, of faith, of truthfulness and redeeming of time.

The child would experience his parents’ love, kindness and gentleness through the process. Most importantly, he would be taught to have a right relationship with our Lord, and by the grace of God, faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour at an early age.

This psalm is written to encourage parents to press on with the good work that the Lord has entrusted to us. This mandate also applies to someone who may not be a parent but is involved and in contact with young people whom the Lord has entrusted to his care.

Earthly training presupposes the day of judgment when he will have to stand before our Almighty Creator God, whether he stand justified or condemned, parents are given this great privilege to influence before their destinies are eternally fixed. (JC Ryle)

May we be mindful to make the well-being of the child’s soul our priority.

Yours lovingly,

Pastor Lek Aik Wee