The Blessing of Godly Parents

Scripture

Psalm 116:¹⁶ O Lord, I am your servant;

I am your servant, the child of your serving girl.

You have loosed my bonds.

¹⁷ I will offer to you a thanksgiving sacrifice

and call on the name of the Lord.

¹⁸ I will pay my vows to the Lord

in the presence of all his people,

¹⁹ in the courts of the house of the Lord,

in your midst, O Jerusalem.

Praise the Lord!

Observation

The Psalmist has a heart filled with gratitude for the things of God. Even in difficult hours there is something that can be praised. This servant of the Lord knows that his life has been greatly influenced by his mother. She was a woman who served God and therefore placed before the Psalmist a model for holy living. The blessing of his childhood has brought him into a life of thanksgiving. He has learned to call on the name of the Lord and to publicly avow his faith. He rejoices and praises the Lord!

Application

Sometimes the role of godly parents is overlooked within the Christian life, however, we know the it is foundational to being a Christian. Studies show that the greatest indicator of church attendance in adulthood is church attendance in childhood, when brought to church by a parent. The seeds of faith are planted in the hearts and minds of very young children. The investment of godly parents into the lives of their children will have an eternal payoff. 

I have been blessed by godly parents who are now aging. I’m discovering how much I have depended upon them throughout the years for their wise counsel and daily prayers. Conversations have become a little more difficult as their senses are no longer as sharp as they used to be. Sometimes I have to raise my voice to be heard, or the important conversation from the previous day is completely forgotten. Little by little the relationship I’ve enjoyed with them, the one I’d taken for granted, is slipping away. I will miss the way things used to be, but I will forever be grateful that they invested in me. 

I will not forget the daily devotions around the breakfast table as a child. We read from the Egermeier’s Bible Story book every morning, year after year until finally the cover fell off the book. We prayed together for the day. My mother would have her personal devotions after we left the house for school. I know she read the word, underlining those Scriptures that meant so much to her, and carefully wrote our names on her prayer list. My father always had a tender heart for those who were in need. He might take us along to help someone out or show us a place that suffered from injustice. He would tell his children that they could grow up to do anything in the power of the Spirit. They were our cheerleaders and champions.

The Psalmist must have felt the same way about his mother. He was the child of a servant of God and was grateful. I’m grateful for that which has been handed to me by my parents. Now my prayer is that I can be a good parent and grandparent to those who are coming after me. I want to be faithful, so that they can be faithful.

Prayer

Lord, I am so grateful for my godly parents. Please, help me not to take that for granted and may I also be a woman of faith who passes along my love for you. Amen.