By My Spirit
Raising Our Children In Partnership With Yahweh
THE VERSE
“Then He answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the Word of Yahweh unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith Yahweh of hosts.” (Zechariah 4:6)
THE CONTEXT
“Then he said to me, This is what Yahweh says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says Yahweh of Heaven's Armies. Nothing, not even a mighty mountain, will stand in Zerubbabel's way; it will become a level plain before him! And when Zerubbabel sets the final stone of the Temple in place, the people will shout: May Elohim bless it! May Elohim bless it!” (Zechariah 4:6-7)
LET’S LOOK AT THIS PASSAGE A LITTLE CLOSER
This verse is very encouraging. It reminds us that in our own strength we can never even begin to realistically HOPE to see our children established in the faith. In Yahweh’s strength, however, we can receive a PROMISE that they WILL be established in the faith. We are only human. We cannot cause our children’s hearts to long for Yahweh. “Only human”, though, is not an excuse to do nothing. Yahweh has given humans abilities to do what He desires them to do, and as human parents, we CAN train our children to long for Yahweh, and Yahweh then promises to do the rest (that is, to create that yearning for Him in their hearts and spirits). Of course we must DO things: teach our children, train our children, spend time with our children, make memories with our children, correct our children, make rules for our children, set standards for our children, talk with our children, explain things to our children, set a good example for our children. But at the same time, we must realize that we cannot do everything on our own. Amidst all our “doing”, which is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT, we also must recognize that there are some things only Yahweh can do, and daily commit ourselves and our children to Him in prayer. If we are trying to do all the right things for our children, on our own, forgetting about Yahweh’s strength and Yahweh’s help, we are following a recipe for disaster. We must often seek Yahweh for His wisdom, His help, and His perfecting work in our own and our children’s lives. It is His Spirit which produces positive results. We do not only want “well-trained children”; we also ultimately want “Spirit-filled children”, and this is where we need to turn to Yahweh. We can teach our children of Yahweh’s Spirit; we can correct them for behaviors which are contrary to His Spirit; we can whet their appetite for spiritual things; we can encourage the fruits of the Spirit in their lives; we can tell them that their bodies are the temples of the set-apart Spirit. All of these things are essential. We CANNOT however, pour our Yahweh’s Spirit in their lives. All effective parenting must be a partnership between the parents and Yahweh; otherwise, many good efforts will fail.
As parents, we need to let the Spirit have full control of our own lives, so we can be shining examples to our children of the power and transformation of that Spirit in one’s life.
As parents we need to build Yahweh’s character into our children, praying often for them with faith that He will pour out His Spirit on them.
As we work in partnership with Yahweh, may our homes be blessed. As the people in Zechariah 4 shouted, “May Elohim bless it! May Elohim bless it!”
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