Be A Warrior

Proverbs 22:6 -Teach a child to choose the right path, and when he is older, he will remain upon it.

As I’ve shared in the past, I was raised by a God fearing, God loving, mother. We were in church every time the doors were open. We were involved in every ministry that was available at the church. When I look back at that part of my life, I am reminded of just how important those formative years were in my faith. The development of my faith started at a very young age in Sunday School. I learned the solid foundation of my faith in those years. I learned the pivotal bible stories and their powerful truths. My roots of faith run deep because of each and every lesson I was taught in those small Sunday School classes. I will forever be grateful for those men and women that sacrificed their time to teach me God’s word. J.P. and Gladys Wilson and Mrs. Ruthie are just a few that stick out in my mind.

Also, as I have shared before, I veered from the straight and narrow path for a while. However, due to my strongly rooted faith and a mother that stayed on her knees for me, I returned to that path and have been able to stay on it for most of my adult life. I credit those years of Sunday School for so much in my life. Even in my far country days there were lines I would not cross because my moral compass was so firmly rooted in God’s truth.

As I look around our church and wander down the halls of the education building in our church, I am saddened to see so few children being brought to Sunday School. It is more than sadness; it is also fear for the future for these children. The sadness is from knowing that these kids are not experiencing the joy of learning the beautiful stories such as David and his slingshot, Daniel in the lion’s den, and Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the fiery furnace. How else can they know how miraculously God provides for His children without learning these very basic stories? The fear comes from knowing that we have a very real enemy that is out to kill, steal, and destroy anyone and everyone he can. Children are not excluded from his schemes. If these precious, little children aren’t being sheltered with God’s word on a regular basis, how else are they going to know that their God can and will protect them from this prowling lion, or that this enemy can be destroyed by simply speaking scripture in their hearts?

When I thought about writing this blog, the image above immediately came to mind. This image is what I picture when I think about my childhood. My mother used her shield of faith to protect her children. She was the warrior that refused to allow the enemy to steal her children from the One and Only God she clung to so strongly. Even with that protection, I struggled with the enemy's pull and attempts to destroy my life. I cannot imagine what it would have been like if I had not been brought up under that shield. As I think about what a warrior my mother was, it forces me to think, was I that same warrior for my daughter? Can or will I be that warrior for my grandchildren?

We were discussing this in our Sunday School class this past week, and a friend of mine made the comment that she felt a burden to make sure her children were raised in church, Sunday School, and every other opportunity for them to be grounded in this faith. She felt that God was holding her responsible for her children’s faith. Oh, that we would all have that burden! I think if we would allow ourselves to contemplate the alternative, what would our children’s lives be like without the irreplaceable anchor of faith?

I want to be that warrior. The one that stands in between the enemy and my child and future grandchildren. My mother has told me, frequently, of a prayer that she prayed over us our entire life. She prayed that her children, her grandchildren, and her grandchildren’s grandchildren and all future generations until the coming of Christ would know the saving knowledge of her Lord and Savior. My prayer is that we all have this same burden: To shelter our children, to raise them up, and teach them how to become the next generation of warriors!