Some Words Of Wisdom I Stumbled Upon This Morning

Ecclesiastes 11:9 & 10 Young people, it's wonderful to be young! Enjoy every minute of it. Do everything you want to do; take it all in. But remember that you must give an account to God for everything you do. 10 So refuse to worry, and keep your body healthy. But remember that youth, with a whole life before you, is meaningless.

12:1 Don't let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, "Life is not pleasant anymore."

Mmmm, good words, huh? What does it mean, you wonder? Well, it's simple. Do not put anything/anyone above the Lord. I wish I'd known that in my teenage years. Well, I can't say that, because I did know it, I just chose to ignore it. Some people say that every teenager will experiment with drugs or alcohol. Is that true? I hope not. And I don't think so. I did. I regret it, but the past is the past and I am mercifully forgiven.

I pray my kids will follow these verses of wisdom King Solomon wrote so long ago. I believe that good behavior and attitudes from children is a result from the way they are parented. Let me say that again, worded a little differently. All kids need discipline in their life. I believe they actually crave it. It's like a baby who needs to be put on a schedule for the first year or so of its little life~they need that taught to them. I see this every single day of my life in the environment around me. Give a kid some love, some praise on how proud you are of them, and some consistency in their life, and you will see a new child emerge.

I like this verse, and I think it goes with what I'm talking about. I read it from my devotion today. It was on an entirely different subject, however, I think it applies to this.

Isaiah 61:3 {The Lord} will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. {New Living Translation}

God takes something meaningLESS, and turns it around for good. Like in kids. If only everyone saw this in that light. Instead, doctors today diagnose kids as attention deficit disorder, or attention defecit hyperactive disorder. And while I am certain that in some cases this DOES exist, I wouldn't be so quick to believe it. When I was a kid these same issues were around, but were quickly solved with consistent discipline by Mom and Dad. Please don't think I'm making light of today's problems. There are some REAL problems with kids in this world, I just don't believe they're all ADD/ADHD. Call me naive, whatever...I think there are OTHER issues to be addressed.

Alright, back to Ecclesiastes...while life {SIN} feels good in the present time, its repurcussions do not. So I think King Solomon was telling us to remember this in the folly of our youth. And here is what an online dictionary had to say about the word folly.

fol⋅ly

noun, plural -lies for 2–6.

1.	the state or quality of being foolish; lack of understanding or sense.

2.	a foolish action, practice, idea, etc.; absurdity: the folly of performing without a rehearsal.

3.	a costly and foolish undertaking; unwise investment or expenditure.

Are all youths going to act this way? Probably. They will definitely have their moments of wildness, and totally rebelling against their parents. Will they turn to drugs or alcohol? I don't think so. I guess it depends on what their foundation is based on. On WHO their foundation is based on. And this is why we are in church ALL THE TIME. I do not believe that someone will go to Hell for missing church, and I do not believe that drinking a glass of wine or smoking a cigarette will send you there. I do believe that we are called to place God on His throne~He is to be our number One priority. This is what the last verse is talking about. We are to remember Him always~so that our hearts will not grow old and jaded.

This is something close to my heart~obviously. Kids. I have 4 of them, I work with them, I believe that I understand them. I am their parent/friend/ally/and sometimes, voice. I am quick to jump out and defend a child who is wrongly treated. I am quick to stop someone from speaking harshly about them in my presence, because everyone, every CHILD is a child of God. I believe that they should all be loved and praised. Who of you reading this, STILL loves to hear a kind word spoken about you??? I know I do. I pray that the Lord recalls this to my memory everyday as I deal with almost 900 students daily. I pray that He gives me patience, love and kindness toward them. My face may be the only smiling face they ever get to see. Talk about getting to show them what the love of the Lord looks like. Isn't that amazing? Think about this today as you deal with kids {your own, or others} everywhere.