The Future of the Heart: Rearing children to be God’s arrows

My heart beats from this reality and my actions stem from this realization, that my life is not most important because of what change it brings about now, but what pounding and outlasting heart matter I leave behind.

There have been a lot of heightened emotions during these times. We seem to be carrying a lot more death in our bodies....and not for the sake of the Kingdom (2 Corinthians 4:11), but in defense of humanity. People are dying at the unjust hands of other human beings, and as a result of an untraceable virus.

The children are watching.

During this worldwide pandemic and national racial epidemic, "I can't breathe" has been spoken constantly by 1) those clamoring to get from behind a protective mask and 2) those wrestling for freedom from under the foot of oppressive law enforcement.

1. Some people believe they deserve to live unmasked right now because they proclaim "the rampant virus is not as dangerous as it is displayed." They assert that their constitutional rights are being disrespected, and their ability to breathe is being compromised.

The cases of Coronavirus increase as more and more people take their very last breath.

…and the children are watching.

2. Then there are those who proclaim similarly that they cannot breathe as their constitutional rights are disregarded, their bodies disrespected, and their right to breathe is stolen just as soon as they are attempting to explain that "I am not as dangerous as I am being displayed"

The cases of racist murders increase as more and more people take their very last breath.

…and the children are watching.

Do you see how the claims look so similar, yet are so very different? How they can proclaim the same sentiment but mean it in two totally different ways? Do you see how it is dangerously important that we acknowledge the clear heart matter we pass on to children, because things get muddled very quickly - and the necessity of their clarity on issues is of utmost importance? Humankind depends on it...

...and I keep thinking on the future of the heart. What are the children actually seeing in us?

Are we molding them to beat feverishly for the first claim or pound heavily for the second? Are they being prepared to fight against inconvenience or injustice? What are we teaching them to breathe for - what is most important (Colossians 3:1-6)? We've got the entire future under our roofs, in our villages, sitting in our classrooms, and living in our neighborhoods; what are we going to do with all of that hope? What heart matters are we going to pass down?* They are watching.

What happens to the future's beating heart if we continue to live this way? Some will say "I can't breathe" over the slightest inconvenience in their life, while others will exclaim "I can't breathe!" while being killed for existing. Some will put their comfort above the humanity of others, while some will fight to simply be seen as human at all. Some will disregard God's sovereignty to rule their own lives. Some will avoid righteousness and cling to evil. Some will use their voice to project personal power, and others will say only what the Lord says (Numbers 24:13). It matters what our children see us fight for, so that they know what they have been trained for (Psalm 127: 3-5). An arrow only fights for the wars it's been sharpened to take on...it only knows the warrior that prepared it.** How we live matters.

I heard it said once that the greatest soul tie is that between parent and child, because of its simplistic sharing of complex DNA. What a mother or father knows, believes, and passes down to their children is more concrete than any other influence - good or bad.

Abandonment.

Rage.

Abuse.

Hate.

Self-righteousness.

Love.

Understanding.

Sacrifice.

Compassion.

Forgiveness.

Whether the Fruits of the Spirit or Works of the Flesh, the state of our future heart is in our hands. Children are learning to either know God and holy-fight for His kingdom and against their own self-centeredness, or they are being engraved with close-mindedness, selfishness, and being their own god.

Curl Check:

What are you teaching the future hearts of your family, nation, and world about the unjust and untraceable? How are you instilling faith, humility, a trust in God, a service of others, right understanding of God's Laws, and Jesus's complete sacrifice and love for us ALL? How are they being reared to behave and breathe once you are gone? Proverbs 22:6

As a woman yet not a mother, I can only account for the small sphere of influence I have on the children within my circle, and those I touch with the amount of my life and faith that I share publicly. However, I felt compelled to share my questions, questions I pray we all ask and answer honestly. It's not only the pandemic and racial epidemic that we need to have in mind, but every matter we express emotion and opinion on, because the children are watching. If we care any amount about what happens to them - God's world, the Body, the presentation of the bride to Bridegroom - we have to always consider the future of our heart matters (Proverbs 1:8-9; Isaiah 54:13).

* 2 Timothy 3:14-15, Paul recognizes that in addition to the teachings he shared with Timothy in adulthood, Timothy's earliest instillment of Scripture was by his mother and grandmother in childhood. The wisdom for salvation came from his youth.

**Psalm 8:2, the most vulnerable and impressionable ones sing God's praises without fear. God created the weak to correct the strong and uphold His ways. We cannot get in the way of the natural and authentic love and submission to God found only in the smallest of humankind.

Smile, Shine, and Love, Curlfriends!

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I love you, Curls!