We Are Not Alone

I once watched a video of a little bear cub playing by himself. Then suddenly, he hears the growl of a mountain lion. He looks and screams with uncontrollable fear and runs away as fast as he can. But the lion can run faster, and he feels the lion gaining ground. The cub sees a fallen tree extended over a rushing stream, but the tree is high in the air, and the stream is far below. He is reluctant to cross the stream. But he looks back at the lion and realizes he has no choice but to try and cross the stream on the tree. With apprehension, the cub makes its way to the end of the tree but sees it does not reach the other side. The lion follows him. And when it seems he has reached his end, the tree suddenly breaks off, and the cub is swept away by the fierce current below.

The lion follows on the shore, always keeping sight of his next meal. The lion jumps to some rocks in the middle of the stream, where he can wait for this prey to come to him. The cub works to get to the far side but finds the lion has followed him and instantly pounced on him. He is defenseless against such a powerful foe.

Then suddenly, the lion retreats. You wonder what in the world happened? Then, on the shore appears a giant bear standing on two legs, mad enough to tear that lion apart. The cub runs to his mama, and she comforts him.

We have all been chased by the lion, stricken by panic and forced to find a way to escape. We have all been plunged into the water of doubt. We have all been slapped by the enemy who says, “I have you now!” We have all felt that feeling of helplessness! Then we have all heard the roar of our Lord Jesus—and have watched the enemy flee. At first, we were startled and wondered what had just happened, and then we looked, and it was the Lion of Judah who said leave my child alone! We are not alone! He is with us!

 

 

Confrontation is Essential

 

You can do amazing things with cement, but you must be prepared for it when it comes, and you must work with it until you have what your desire. First, you must prepare the ground and set the forms, which must be rechecked. Then you must be able to work with the cement, pour it into the forms, and let it set up. This is not to say that you choose your child’s life partner and occupation, but in a sense you do. You give the child a foundation from which the child can begin to build. The parent that believes loving their child is enough is mistaken and will probably one day be shamed by their own child. And much of the blame will rest with the parent because they failed to train the child through discipline.

If you have a child you don’t enjoy being around, and no one else does either, you have a problem that should be addressed promptly. It won’t go away on its own. A child needs boundaries. They flourish with boundaries and often try to figure out where the boundaries are.

While Eli, the priest (1 Samuel 2), was ignoring his son’s bad behavior, God was preparing a leader in the small child, Samuel. The narrative points us to a small boy ministering before the Lord. We should never discount the training and the potential of children. They must be trained and disciplined if they are going to be the person God has for them to be. To have a fool for a child brings grief; there is no joy for the parent of a godless fool” (Prov 17:21). If you think a child will grow up without discipline to be a wonderful person, you are sadly mistaken. As a parent, do not despise discipline and training. It is your friend and the transforming process for the child. Eli had difficulty with discipline regarding his sons. He was the kind of parent who wanted his sons to be happy, and he certainly did not like confrontation. His sons, however, became worthless and corrupt; they were stealing and committing immoral acts. Eli knew but did not want to confront them.

Eli’s attempt to confront his sons showed his weakness in dealing with them. Most likely, this is how he has always dealt with them, telling them what is correct but leaving them to keep doing their own thing. There is a lack of resolve to deal with the problem. Where is the outrage? Where is the shame? Where is the anger? Where is the action? Confrontation is not easy, but our integrity demands action. We cannot allow corruption to continue if it is within our power to end it. Anything less would be indifference, which we see in Eli. We are not helpless unless we believe we are. It is called “Learned Helplessness.” We must love and affirm our children, but we must also discipline them and, at times, confront them. We cannot allow a two year or a teenager to be disrespectful and out of control—we must engage them. If not, they will hurt themselves and others as they grow older into adulthood.

Integrity Restrains Us

  

Solomon wrote, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (Proverbs 4:23). It is another way of telling us to guard our integrity. Your integrity is your most valuable possession, and once it is lost—it is not easy to get it back.

If you detect that you are prone to veer from the path of honesty in some reaction of self-preservation when faced with a trial, ask God for help. Seek his guidance, and do not ignore a deadly problem that will only worsen with time. You cannot extinguish what you cannot distinguish. You have to acknowledge the problem before you can work on it. You cannot change something you have not identified. Go to work on your weaknesses before they cause your downfall.

It’s never too late to do the right thing. No matter how far you are into a decision, if you realize it is wrong, take immediate action to reverse it. Cut your losses and run the other way. It’s never too late to do the right thing! From the moment you begin to do the right thing, you are changing your life, even if you don’t see the immediate effects of your decision. It may take a while before you feel whole again, but you will be on the right road.

No sin or mistake is made in isolation. It will cost you and the people around you. When we forget God, we forget the world around us. Someone will pay the price beside us when we venture away from our integrity and fail to guard our hearts. Our testimony before the world will suffer credibility. Our dependence on God helps us protect our hearts and maintain our testimony to the world.