In his Psalm, Solomon describes children as a “heritage from the Lord.” The word translated as “heritage” describes personal property that has been handed or passed down as an inheritance to a successive generation. Do not miss this. Our children first belonged to God, who then passed them down as an inheritance to us. They were once God’s property, but he has given them to us, expecting us to steward them well.
Children are also described as a “reward.” This word, in its original form, carried the meaning of a payment or wages for work. The idea is that some form of payment is given for services rendered; the recipient of the payment is hired labor. In other words, parents are rewarded for their service and are paid for it through childbearing. However, there is still an expectation of stewardship of that payment.
Both sentiments communicate an expectation for Godly childbearing. After all, in Malachi, we see one significant purpose of marriage—to produce Godly offspring (Malachi 2:15). This begs the question then, “What does proper stewardship of children look like?”
Solomon equates children to “arrows in the hand of a warrior.” Practically speaking, what is the purpose of a warrior possessing arrows? Arrows were used as weapons to defeat the enemy. Did you get that? Your children are weapons against the enemy. It is through rearing children to follow the Lord that we are literally building an army. However, there are a few precautions we must take to ensure that our “weapons” are effective.
Today, there are so many things competing for our attention, so many opportunities and experiences are available to us. We want to experience it all, and we want the same for our kids. For this reason, we often commit our lives to pursuing things that consume our time. We sign our kids up for all sorts of activities because we believe this helps our kids develop “well-rounded” lives. Unfortunately, very few of these activities nurture a growing relationship with Jesus. Furthermore, many strain that relationship due to Sunday morning commitments. Church fellowship and Bible study slip further down the priority list. As parents, we feel that a few missed Bible studies and youth fellowships are necessary to ensure that personal productivity is cultivated, more relationships are built, healthy disciplines are established, and college scholarships are secured. After all, we believe that these types of commitments help guarantee future successes in life, career, etc. We often forget that the Bible is necessary for all of these things, plus much more. Because we are so focused on building well-rounded children, the result is well-rounded arrows. Unfortunately, well-rounded arrows are useless in war. While they may stun the enemy, they won’t defeat him.
A second precaution we must take is to ensure that our arrows stay sharp. While the first precaution speaks to blunt, rounded arrows, this one speaks to arrows that grow dull over time. The former is preventative in that it safeguards against underuse; the latter is proactive in that it safeguards against overuse. As we know, anything sharp grows dull over time with more use. Our children are weapons against the enemy—they provide protection against our families, our communities, and the Church. There is an intense, ongoing fight for control over their lives. They are being used all the time, whether we realize it or not. These battles come in the form of media, friends, and culture. As parents, we have a responsibility to ensure they remain sharp at all times. We must work to cover them in prayer and Scripture, and we must strive to see that they do the same. Spiritual diligence is required; we cannot compromise or let down our guard.
If we ensure that our arrows remain sharp through diligent efforts of preventative and proactive Godly nurturing and if we are faithful stewards of that which has been passed down and rewarded to us, then we will not be put to shame when the enemy approaches. What type of arrows are in your quiver? Have you assessed your weapons lately?