As a teenager, I found myself crying on my dad’s chest as he shared how his mom, single and pregnant at 15 years old, had decided to keep and raise him.
Hearing that story impacted me to the core and helped me become a man.
In Deuteronomy 6:4-9, God told the Israelites to love Him with all of their heart, soul and strength. He instructed them to “impress” his commandments on their children: “Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (v.7, NIV).
Yet, in Judges, when Joshua and his generation had died, “Another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel,” and they “forsook the Lord” (Judg. 2:10-12, NKJV). The Israelites had failed to impress on the new generation the wonders of His love and deliverance.
The stories my parents shared with me still resound in my heart today.
As pastors and leaders, let’s impress on future generations what the Lord had done for us, so that they know the goodness of God.
This Week’s Prayer Focus [5 in 5]
Personal Prayer
1. Pray that we have the courage and enthusiasm to share with our children how we became Christians, who we were before and who we are now because of His grace.
2. Pray that our children do not forsake the Lord. Pray that they remain faithful throughout their childhood, youth and adult years.
3. Pray that our churches can effectively share with younger generations what the Lord has done for us and the ones before us.
Foursquare Focus
4. Please pray for the campers’ hearts that could be touched this week at NextGen summer camps—ask the Lord to prepare and open them.
5. Lift up our Foursquare missionaries around the world, and see our FMI Monthly Prayer Guide for specific needs.
Share your thoughts. See comments below, and add your own.
