by Pastor Patrick Cho

Being a dad really changes a person’s life quite a bit. Ever since Eden came into the world, Christine and I have had to adjust our schedules, constantly care for her, and rework our finances. There’s a lot to think about as a new parent. Why is she crying? Is she hungry? Is she sleeping too much? Etc. It’s not to say that we don’t like parenting. It’s quite the opposite! We love parenting! Having Eden in our home has doubled the fun and exponentially increased the love! Oftentimes you’ll hear even Christians saying, “Don’t have kids for a while. Enjoy your marriage first.” This is a load of baloney. The Bible tells us that children are a gift and blessing from the Lord. To have many children is a sign of tremendous blessing (cf. Ps. 127:4-5). These people might as well tell you to not seek the Lord’s blessing. If you think about it, it’s actually an unloving thing to say and it goes against the principles of God’s Word. So have kids… but get married first.

Being a parent also opens your mind up to other issues that you wouldn’t have thought much of before. Should we send her to public school? What will she watch on TV, if anything? What will her friends be like? You realize more how this world’s philosophy towards childrearing is totally opposed to what God’s Word teaches. For instance, I came across an article the other day on the internet entitled, “Spare the Rod,” and it gave reasons why parents should not spank their children. I thought it was interesting that the author chose that title because the rest of the verse he is quoting says that if you spare the rod, you hate your child (Prov. 13:24). This is just one example of the world looking at the Bible and essentially saying that they know better than God and that God’s principles are antiquated. But if God’s principles were outdated, He would have come out with a second edition of the Bible. He didn’t, so we can conclude that His principles are timeless.

All this goes to show that this world is antithetically opposed to God. We live in a world that hates our Lord and Savior, mocks the cross, and shuns biblical principles (at least the ones they don’t like). Certainly, Christine and I are learning that we can’t shield Eden from all this influence, but we can teach her to guard her mind against it. In the same way, you need to make sure that you maintain the spiritual discernment to know what is of the Lord and what is not. Much of this world’s counsel sounds appealing because it caters to people. Would you be able to tell the difference between worldly counsel and godly counsel?