“What legacy are you leaving?”

What is your legacy?

2Chron 33 If someone would open your life’s diary what would they read? Would it be like the life of King Manasseh who had a godly father in King Hezekiah or would it read that you rebelled and refused God’s ways…until…

The Chronicler records these words: the annals record all of King Manasseh’s sins and unfaithful acts along with the sites where he built high places and erected Asherah poles and idols. Even though God spoke to him, he refused to listen. So, God disciplined Manasseh with hooks in his nose, bronze chains, and extradition to a foreign land where he languished in a prison cell with cold gruel, day-old bread, and water. It was then that his senses were awakened and he “realized that the Lord is the true God” and repented. [2Chron 33:13] It was because of the mercy of God that he was released and returned to his kingdom. God’s mercy is overflowing!

God has placed this event in His Word to remind us that it begins with a heart that is humbled but also that sin produces consequences not just for us but also for family and children. Manasseh may have repented but the damage was long-lasting. His son Amon followed in his footsteps of an unrepentant lifestyle and his life ended in an assassination.  

Generations come and go and we can learn much from the ancestral record. Hezekiah: godly. Manasseh: ungodly but repentant. Amon: ungodly to the end.

What would your diary say about your life?

Parenting Tough Kids

If you have raised a godly child, consider yourself blessed. Do you know of a parent that needs some godly counsel? Why not disciple them?

2kings 20 dads sonsa

2Kings 20-24  Although Hezekiah was a good king, he was not a faithful father. His son Manasseh was the worst of the worst! The Chronicle writer tells us however that after being captured by the Babylonians, he repented and God returned him to his homeland. His story is just what is needed when you face a hardened sinner who has done just about the worst sin you can think of and feels that there is no hope for him/her. Tuck that away for such a time as that. Manasseh is the story of us all: sinners saved by His grace.

Manasseh’s son Amon followed in his footsteps but never repented.  Manasseh’s grandson Josiah was the model king; faithful, obedient and godly. He obeyed the Law to the letter, cleansing and rebuilding the Temple. He cleansed the land and its people. God blessed him in many ways. Yet, as godly as he was, his son Jehoahaz returned to the ways of his grandfather and uncle.

There are some lessons here for parents who are discouraged because of their children’s choices. God was gracious to Josiah that he never saw the ultimate rebelliousness of his son. Sometimes that happens to us as well. Even when you raise them correctly, children make choices; some good and some bad. Tuck that lesson away when you are facing an uphill battle.

Parenting is the toughest job given to a person. We need to remember that and pray and disciple these young parents.   Come alongside them; encourage them; listen to them.

Who is in your life that you need to disciple?

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