27/05/2024
Love’s in the eyes of a child …
The scorecard of childhood is old age. Nothing reveals a life that was trained from childhood than how that life turns out and navigate old age. Proverbs 22:6 says “train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” It’s easy to see older people who were not trained as children. They’re not accountable or responsible, stumbling from one bad decision to another. This leads to failure in life. At a point, loved ones and friends stop loving and abandon them.
Obedience-based parenting should not be the objective of training either. You may have a child who will obey parents, obey authorities and God, but lack initiative. Love on the other hand should be the main ingredient of training. When a child is loved, he can climb the mountains. Yet who loves better than our God? It’s said that foolishness resides in the heart of a child; so loving children regardless of their flaws is strength, just as God loves man regardless of the sin-nature. Unfortunately, man struggles to imitate this God-nature. We love children for their perceived innocence and that’s where it stops. As a child, it’s easy to excuse foolishness. As a youth it becomes difficult. As an adult, it’s inexcusable. In old age the scorecard is evident.
However, if we can see the child in every young person we’re perplexed with; see the child in every adult we’re disappointed with, then maybe we will be able to love them through old age and help them prolong their days.
Build relationships where the other person will never stop being a child deserving love in your eyes. Even Christ demands that we see the kingdom of God from the eyes of a child. Are you confused about relationships? Find a child to love and learn from. To all those who will never grow old, ‘happy children’s day’.
