Proverbs 9:12 "If thou be wise, thou shalt be wise for thyself: but if thou scornest, thou alone shalt bear it."
What a great verse on personal responsibility. I would love to be able to make all the decisions for my kids. Even though I know I would make some wrong decisions, I would make many more right ones than sometimes I see them making! But God has chosen to give us free will on the most important decision - salvation! We only have what my husband refers to as "the illusion of control" over many of their other decisions in life. We can force them to go to church, but we can not force them to accept the truths of God's Word. We can force them to eat healthy, but we can not force them to never harm their bodies through other unhealthy behaviors. We can force them not to argue with their siblings, but we can not force them to love one another.
As a parent it is hard to realize, especially for me in the teen years, that you have less control than you ever imagined. However, it is comforting to know that God is the Author of free choice. Adam and Eve had three sons, and the very first child ever born, exercised his free will in committing murder against his own brother. Judas, who spent time with the very Son of God, exercised his own free will in rejecting Christ, and betraying Him to the jealous leaders who wanted to kill Him.
Because God is the Author of free will, I know that it is a good thing. All we can do is influence them, and try to bring them up to follow the Guide of God's Word. The choice is theirs.
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I feel for my kids. There is so much more that the devil can use to entice them than even when I was a teenager. I just want to make sure I don't give them any extra baggage to carry around. They are loaded already!
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