Life's Instruction Manual

We have a phrase at our house that our 4 year old hears when he disobeys or is about to disobey. We say, "Jackson, if you choose to disobey then Daddy and Mommy cannot keep you safe. Your safety is dependent upon your obedience." Because we are his parents, it is our job to keep him safe. We have knowledge, life experience and wisdom that he does not yet possess. He is told to keep his hands away from the stove-top because the stove-top will hurt him, not because I want to spoil his curiosity or his fun. And so it is with God.

Many people like to see God as a celestial being who has passed a list of "don't do" items down to us. Unfortunately, many church leaders and denominations through the ages have only bolstered this thought with their legalism that is driven by controlling and selfish motives. But there are far more instructions on how to live life. It wouldn't make a whole lot of sense to merely tell people what not to do, would it? Fortunately, I serve a loving God who, as I understand at this juncture in life, is more interested in how I live each day rather than how I manage to stay away from the don'ts. When we focus merely on the don'ts we become quite legalistic and often miss the joy in sharing life with others. It also seems to me that when my heart concerns itself with the how-to live, avoiding the don't do's is a by-product.

God certainly does give us various "don't do" items. But have you really thought about those things? He's not trying to spoil our fun or our curiosity. He's protecting us. We are to remain sexually pure until we are married and then remain faithful to our spouse because by doing so we protect our hearts, our health and our marriage/future marriage. Could you imagine if everyone lived to this standard? There would be no sexually transmitted diseases, no marriages ending as a result of affairs and the abortion rates would drastically decrease. Lives would be saved. We are told not to become drunk because drunkenness puts people in danger. Drunkenness is hard on a person's body. My cousin, a dietitian, recently told me about a man she saw who was in liver failure due to his repeated choice to drink excessively. 40 years old and at death's door. Of course there are many other "don'ts" but I think you get the idea. God wants to protect us, not harm us!

As Kyle and I work on raising our boys, our chief objective is to point them to Christ. We realize that we cannot, as Noel Piper states, bequeath Christ to our children. However, we can live our lives in such a way that our faith makes the reality of a relationship with God and acceptance of Christ as Savior very desirable. Children can become easily, and perhaps rightfully, frustrated when continually told what not to do. As a parent of a precocious preschooler I am very aware of this reality. It is my primary job to teach my sweet boys what God requires, not merely a list of things God doesn't want us to do. How would they know how to live if my husband and I didn't focus primarily on what God wants us to do?

So what does God want us to do? That is a huge question, a question I'm sure I'll never be able to fully answer. I know for certain that God calls us to live our faith in every area of our life and regardless of whose company we are keeping. (Galatians 1:10, James 1:22.) We are called to care for the poor, the orphan, the widow and the captive. (James 1:27, Proverbs 29:7.) We are to be considerate and to put the needs of others at the forefront of our actions. (Phil 2:1-11.) We are to guard our thoughts, actions and speech. (Phil 4:8) And that is just the tip of the iceberg! What a wonderful instruction manual!

One of the biggest lessons I've learned as a parent is that I must be extremely authentic in my daily life. My babies don't need deep philosophical or theological answers at this point. They need to see their parents living a life surrendered to the Christ. I am being continually reminded that, in order to do this, I must saturate my mind with God's Word and the truths that are timeless. What a wonderful instruction manual for life!

I'll close by quoting the lyrics to a song my choir will be singing on Sunday:
The Word of God has spoken, we are changed forever
The Word of God has spoken, we are free
We are running to salvation, we have been forgiven
The power of sin is broken, we are free
From age to age, Your Word will stand, forever and amen
(Travis Cottrell, "The Word of God Has Spoken")