| Our verse to DATE the Word on February 26 (2/26) is 1 Samuel 2:26 |
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| 1 Samuel 2:26 says, “And the child Samuel grew in stature, and in favor both with the LORD and men.” |
| A BALANCED GROWTH PLAN From the moment of birth, it is expected that a child GROW. Growing physically is natural and necessary. As a parent. you take your newborn in for checkups to see if they are growing. There is the expectation that the baby will be gaining weight and getting taller. 1 Samuel 2:26 gives the report that the child Samuel was PHYSICALLY growing. However, it is worth noting that along with marks on a doorpost to show he was getting taller, he was growing spiritually and relationally. He was growing in stature and he was growing in FAVOR with the Lord and growing in favor with men. He was becoming a well-balanced child! Reading about Samuel’s growth reminds us that the growth of a child is more than just physical. Just as there must be attention to a child’s physical development, there must be attention given to the child’s spiritual development and relationship development. Growing in all three of these areas does not come accidentally. There must be intentional WORK done by parents. There must be intentional TRAINING and TEACHING. As a parent, you are responsible for training your child(ren.) Deuteronomy 6 teaches that parents are to teach their children the commandments of God. In teaching the Ten Commandments you teach them first about a relationship with God and then a relationship with others. The first four commandments are vertical. A child learns to respect GOD. The last 6 commandments are horizontal. A child learns to respect OTHERS. And the first place they learn to respect others is in the home where they learn to respect their parents. When this training is done you should see along with physical growth that there will be spiritual growth and relational growth. It is worth noting that Jesus grew like Samuel grew. We find in Luke 2:52 Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. For me, as a parent, a Christian educator, and as a pastor I use I Samuel 2:26 and more so Luke 2:52 to determine the crucial areas that I am to be focused on to bring about the total development of a child. In looking at Luke 2:52 we see there is the INTELLECTUAL growth of Jesus as He grew in wisdom. There is PHYSICAL growth as He grew in stature. There is RELATIONAL growth as He grows in favor with people and there is SPIRITUAL growth as He grew in favor with God. While I look at these key areas for developing a well-balanced child, I also look at these 4 areas for personal development. I encourage you to do the same. We should always be learning, growing in wisdom, and growing intellectually. We should always be taking care of our bodies. We should always be increasing our love for God and for people. Are you growing others, especially your children the way Samuel and Jesus grew? Are YOU growing the way Samuel and Jesus grew? Verse to DATE the Word on February 26 (2/26) is 1 Samuel 2:26. It says, “And the child Samuel grew in stature, and in favor both with the LORD and men.” From Dr. John Maxwell: “You don’t grow in a day! You grow daily!” Continue Strong growing yourself so that you might grow others! And remember to DATE THE WORD |