"For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring to Abraham what he has promised him. { Genesis 18:19}

I love these two! They make me smile every time I see this picture. My nephew Zac is in the grey suit, and my son Matt is in the blue. Zac is 21, and Matt will be 23 in December. They have been best buddies since babyhood. Zac lives in North Carolina, and I don't see him often, which is why this picture is so precious to me. Both of them are in college, and will graduate soon. What excitement to see what God has for them in the future. Lots of Mama prayers going up.

Most christian parents pray for their children from the time of conception to the end of their lives. Life becomes more serious for our youngins each day that goes by, and when they are ready for adulthood, the prayers continue, leaning on the truths that we have taught and lived before them. Chuck Swindoll, a seasoned Pastor and Teacher put it this way: "Each day of our lives we make deposits in the memory banks of our children."Childhood is such a crucial time in any one's life. As I get older, I see it more clearly than before. I think more about my own rearing, in light of my life as a parent. I am more likely to forgive my parents for their shortcomings as I see my own.

Sometimes my fault in parenting seem to loom over me like a thick dark cloud, that threatens to pull me apart, because so much of my identity is wrapped up in being a parent. This is when I remind myself that God does not require us to be perfect, but to be as diligent as we can in what we do for Him. No person on this earth was ever a perfect parent. God is the only one who can live up to this call. Since we are all imperfect, our children will be too. Prayer is the great strength that can fill in the blanks between our mess ups and miscalculations.

Abraham was promised that his descendents would be a numerous as the stars. If you look up at the sky on Long Island, perhaps you will get the feeling that stars are a rare thing, but in ancient Israel the sky was bright at night because of the multitude. We know that God was ever faithful to Abraham, and the people of God flooded the land. The people were taught godliness and righteousness, and so were my own. I'm sure you can say the same about your family. Many years bring solid foundations and the end of what we have taught has not been seen. Only God knows the end, and he still hears a mother's hearts cry. "Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old they will not depart."   {Proverbs 22:6}