HopeUC Secunderabad

Raising Godly Children

• HopeUC Secunderabad

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What happens when we neglect to spiritually nourish our children? The enemy already has a plan. In this powerful exploration of biblical parenting, we uncover the sacred responsibility of raising godly seed in a world pulling our children in countless directions.

Drawing from the imagery of a potter shaping clay, we examine how children are most moldable during their formative years—an opportunity that, once passed, may never return. Like wet sponges, they absorb everything around them. Will they absorb God's Word or the world's values? The choice largely rests with parents.

The message dives deep into five essential aspects of godly parenting: modeling authentic faith rather than mere religious talk; saturating our homes with Scripture that equips children to recognize sin; implementing loving discipline that teaches obedience; avoiding provocations that foster rebellion; and honoring each child's unique design or "natural bend."

Through biblical examples like Salome (mother of James and John) and cautionary tales like Jezebel, we witness the lasting impact of maternal influence. Perhaps most moving is the account of Hudson Taylor's mother, whose fervent prayers coincided with her son's conversion 70 miles away—a powerful reminder that when physical presence fails, a mother's prayers can still envelop her children with supernatural protection.

Whether you're a parent, grandparent, or someone who influences children, this message will transform how you view your role in shaping the next generation of believers. What future missionaries, leaders, and faithful disciples sit in your home today, waiting for you to nurture the seeds God has planted?

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ABOUT HOPEUC INDIA
Hope Unlimited Church is an independent, Spirit-filled church with multiple campuses in India, serving young professionals and families from all parts of India in a modern, dynamic metropolitan church setting.
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Speaker 1:

I have titled my message as raising godly seed. Okay? Genesis, chapter 3, verse 15, says I will cause hostility between you and the woman and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head and you will strike his heel. Okay, so if you are not going to pay attention to your children, the enemy already has a plan. It already has a plan of what it needs to do with your children.

Speaker 1:

So, mothers, we need to be alert. We need to be actively praying for our kids. It says that life doesn't come with a manual, but it comes with a mother. Yes, and as a mother, how many times have you physically felt, can I be there every single time with my kid? We are not like Jesus, right, we are not omnipresent. We cannot be everywhere at the same time, but can I tell you, my friends, as a mother, your prayers can envelop your children and when they need it the most, your prayers will cover them and will protect them. So your prayers are powerful. Yes, okay. So if you don't have a plan of how you're going to nourish, build your child up, the devil is ready. The word says the enemy comes to steal, to kill and to destroy, but Jesus said that he has come to give us life, and life in abundance. Okay. So we, as mothers, have to take up our role very seriously, okay, of how we are going to raise children, lord. When they grow up they will not be ashamed, but they will be an honor and they will bring glory to God's name. How many of you have seen mothers or fathers whose children have walked out of the way, have become wayward? You know, is it easy for them to face society? Their heads are filled with shame, they hang their heads in shame because they did not do what was supposed to be done at the right time and they have lost that opportunity to groom that child.

Speaker 1:

So in VBS we learned that you know how a potter takes a lump of formless clay, puts it on the wheel and shapes it into a beautiful image. So that lump of clay is actually your childhood. And when the potter spins the wheel and applies pressure in different directions, you get formed into a beautiful shape which becomes useful. Maybe you can put a plant in it, or maybe you can put some flowers in it, or maybe you can. If it's a plate, you can eat in it. It becomes useful. But if there is no pressure applied and if there is no plan in the mind of the potter, then that clay becomes shapeless, useless, right? So that is how kids are. They are moldable and they are pliable when they are young, but after they have grown to a certain age, if you want to bend them the way you want, then it will not happen, my friends. So you have to realize that you cannot let time go by. You need to do what you need to do at the right time. Like they say, hit the iron when it is hot, not when it is cold. Only then can you get the desired shape or structure.

Speaker 1:

Okay, so my first point this morning I'm reading from Ephesians, chapter 5, verses 1 to 2. It says imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. Following the example of Christ, he loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. Children are very observant, my friends. They observe. You know what are your likes, your dislikes, what are your habits? Yes, so it is our duty as mothers, or as parents, that we need to model godliness to our children. Okay, if I don't like eating vegetables, but I tell my child oh, you need to eat your vegetables. What will the child tell back to me Mama, you better eat your vegetables, right, okay, if you don't finish your work on time. But you tell your child, finish all your homework and then you have to go to bed. Your child is observing everything, my friends. In a similar fashion, you need to model godliness to your kids as well.

Speaker 1:

What is Apostle Paul says in Ephesians 5? It says imitate God. Imitate God in everything that you do. And as your kids are observing you, you are supposed to be a good role model to your children. None of us are perfect, okay, but we can always try, yes, to model godliness to our children. Sadly, for Christian parents, the consequences can be disastrous. If you don't follow this, children can fall away from God altogether. And what will they label you? They will label you as a hypocrite because you are not practicing what you are preaching. Yes, okay. So even before you expect your kids to do something, you must do it yourself. They are very, very observant, my friends. Okay, so the number one point that I want to encourage each one of you to do today is to practice or model godliness to your kids. What do you do when a problem arises, do you run to friends or family for help or do you run to god in prayer? Your children are observing all these things as well, okay, so it is your responsibility to be able to model godliness to your kid, okay?

Speaker 1:

The second point is mothers must saturate their homes with the word of God. Yes, with the Bible, deuteronomy, chapter 11, verses 18 to 21. It says these are the words of Moses. It says so. Commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these words of mine. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your foreheads as reminders. Okay, so headbands, wristbands is what Moses is talking about. Teach them to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you're going to bed and when you are getting up. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on the gates so that, as long as the sky remains above the earth, you and your children may flourish in the land of the Lord swore to give to your ancestors.

Speaker 1:

So what is Moses telling us here? That don't let any opportunity go by to teach the word to your kids. Yes, you can teach the word to your kids in the form of stories. Okay, in the form of lessons like a missionary, lessons in the form of a memory verse. We just had five days of VBS, but the amount of memory verses the kids learned, okay, it's only a matter of taking time and investing. How many of you there when we played the water games? We played one game where we took one wet sponge and we dipped it in water and they had to collect some more water with that sponge.

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Children are like that wet sponge, my friends. They have a lot of capacity to absorb things. You and me should be willing to take that time in order to help them to absorb the word into their lives. And what is the biggest advantage of having the word? When the enemy comes to attack, okay, they have the scripture ready, my friends. To attack, okay, they have the scripture ready, my friends, they know. And when you are discussing scripture situations in life, when you are doing devotions together, it's a chance for you to speak into your kids life. Okay, and the kids also have an equal opportunity to speak back to you of what the challenges they are facing. Yes, and you can impress the word upon their lives. And when they know, when they encounter that situation, the word of God tells us this, so they are not confused whether I need to go to the right or to the left of god. Yes, as children mature and want to go here and there, yes, they want to go. Right, everybody is in college, is going here. I want to go there too, yes, okay, and I was in 10th class, all the school was going on an excursion, so I had my uncle, who's very close to me. My mom is a very, you know, safety freak, so she would never let us go from her side, so I had to convince my uncle, to convince her, so she could let me go on that school trip.

Speaker 1:

Adolescence. So parents who are trying to raise godly children should saturate their homes with the Bible and also practice the truths that are in the word Okay, and one big, important advantage is that when the kids learn the word, they will learn to recognize sin. They will learn to recognize right from wrong and the right way from the wrong way. And this is very, very important, my friends, because this is the need of the hour. Okay, what? What's happening in our schools and colleges?

Speaker 1:

There is something called as peer pressure. Heard of this word, peer. Peer is nothing but your fellow age and peer is pressure. Okay, they will say what is there? Yeah, just one puff, let's taste it. Inquisitive no, curiosity kills the cat, it seems it's very curious. So curiosity Okay, can I tell you something? Be very, very open to your children, my friends. If you will not give them the right information, then they will go to X, y, z, they will go to the internet to extract information from. But if you are open and willing to discuss, then things can be sorted. But many times in our culture it's a taboo to talk about such things. Can we be more progressive? Can we talk to our children Even before they get into a trouble? Can we talk to them and safeguard them and tell them hey, listen, you're about this age, so it's good we'd have this conversation. Yes, talk to your children. They are your children. If you will not talk to them, then the world will put trash into their head, okay, and that's the plan of the enemy. So it is good that we teach them the word and we talk to them one-on-one.

Speaker 1:

Yes, the third point mothers must teach obedience through discipline. Many mothers don't like to do this and it breaks my heart to see because they feel they love their kids so much that they don't want to discipline. We're very scared Thank God we don't have Department of Child Welfare Services that if you hit your child you seen that movie, the movie where the mother is feeding the child with the hands so the Department of Child Welfare comes and takes away the kid. Thank God we don't have such kind of police here Spare the rod and spoil the child. If you think your kid is very sweet and you don't want to discipline, then be ready to be disgraced in front of everybody when the child will say xyz and disgrace you. Anybody had that experience. Child disgracing. Yes, okay, we all have good parents here.

Speaker 1:

Okay, proverbs, chapter 22, verse 15, says a youngster's heart is filled with foolishness, but physical discipline will drive it far away. It's not saying discipline with words, it's saying physical discipline. We have the word to back us up. But don't beat out of anger, my friends, not out of frustration, but to discipline the child. I remember in high school Hindi was one of the subjects my father used to teach me and I could never write her. Have you the her? And I could never write it properly. I wrote it in one way but my dad wanted to teach it in another way and he kept hitting on my knuckles so that I learned her and I hated that her all my life. Okay, probably he was so frustrated working he needed sleep and I was not getting her so very frustrated. So you don't want to leave such bad memories with your kids, right? You want good memories, yes, so a youngster's heart is filled with foolishness, but physical discipline will drive it away.

Speaker 1:

Hebrews, chapter 12, verse 11, says no discipline is enjoyable. While it is happening, while you're smacking your children, the child will not smile and laugh and give you a hug. Yes, they will throw a tantrum. They will throw their legs into the air. They will scream at the top of your voice. They will embarrass you to the core. Okay, yes, no discipline. Well, it is happening. It is enjoyable, but it is painful. It is painful at the moment, but afterwards there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way.

Speaker 1:

You can talk to my children after the service. You can ask them how many times mom has spanked them with a hanger. Yes, daddy's girls will hide behind the dad. Okay, but mother has to do what has to be done. Okay, but mother has to do what has to be done Now. No hangers required, one look, my kids will know what has to be done. Okay, so I have trained them like that. Okay, don't look at me like I'm a taskmaster. I think I've done a decent job at raising my girls. Okay, so we need to do what we need to do. God has given you. You're the parent. Many times the kids will decide what has to be done. Nowadays, I will wear this t-shirt only. I'll wear one. This shoe, another, another shoe.

Speaker 1:

Not listening pastor, many parents will tell them don't listen. They don't listen. We saw so many true colors of the kids during VBS. Okay, so discipline is very, very important because we teach kids to obey through discipline. Proverbs, chapter 29, verse 15, says to discipline a child produces wisdom. But a mother is disgraced by an undisciplined child.

Speaker 1:

Okay, we don't want to land up there in that second line. Yes, okay, the secret to discipline is a healthy balance between corrective communication and punishment. Yes, when children are young, they should be less reasoning and more punishment so that they learn obedience. Ok, you don't sit there and explain to the child why you're going to spank the child. When they're small, you just do it, ok. But when they get a little older, you talk to them what they have done wrong. Yes, if parents don't teach them obedience through punishment when they are young, they won't respond to communication and reasoning when they are old. You have not done the first part, so the second part will be difficult for you. Okay, there is a small window for parents to ingrain obedience in children while they are young, but when they are older it's going to be much harder. Okay, so, mothers, don't hesitate to discipline your child because if you want, nobody will and ultimately the child will become a disgrace, and that's not what God wants your child to be. Okay.

Speaker 1:

So the fourth point mothers must not provoke their children to anger. Okay, ephesians, chapter six, verses one to four. It says children, obey your parents because you belong to the Lord, for this is the right thing to do. Honor your father and your mother. This is the first commandment with a promise If you honor your father and mother, things will go well for you and you will have a long life on this earth. Wonderful promise If we honor our parents. It says fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord. So, just like I said in the previous point that discipline them out of love and not out of anger. Correction should be done with the heart of love in order to restore the child's, not to turn the child away from you.

Speaker 1:

Okay, proverbs, chapter 15, verses one, says a gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make temper flare. This is especially true when kids are teenagers. Okay, don't get into arguments If you see that your child is upset. If you see that your child is upset, then don't say two, three words, put more masala to the fire. Okay. So you also have to know when you have to speak and what you need to speak. Sometimes the tone of the voice even though you may not say anything harsh, the tone of the voice also matters. Okay. So parents keep this in mind. A gentle answer deflects anger, but harsh words make tempers flare, okay. So this is something that we need to keep in mind when we are dealing with our children. Okay, okay.

Speaker 1:

And also something do not provoke rebellion in children. Yes, what is the thing Rebellion? Rebellion is to say you know, you are not an authority, I am an authority, I will do. What I want is rebellion, okay. So if that rebellious spirit enters a child, then it's going to be very, very difficult. Okay, rebellion is not something like a child getting upset for a moment, but it is a deep rooted bitterness. Okay, so we should not go to that stage where that anger, which is undelt, will lead to rebellion. Okay, I've heard stories of young men leaving homes because they are just angry with their parents. They don't want to stay with their parents anymore because they feel the parents do not understand them. That means there has been no communication happening in that household. If it has gone to that level, okay, as parents, it is our responsibility to speak into our children and make sure we don't get into the stage where the child starts to rebel, yes, okay, and what will happen? Rebellion, ultimately, will take you very far away from God, okay.

Speaker 1:

So the last point, even before I share some beautiful examples from the word is mothers must know their children. Is mothers must know their children. Yes, there's a famous story called Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, so it's a very old novel. Sr auntie is smiling. So my mom used to tell me this Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. So in the daytime he's a doctor, but in the night he's a bad man doing bad things. So there are two coins, two faces to one coin.

Speaker 1:

So your child, who your child is, you will only know when you start spending time with your kids. Yes, okay, ever gone to a parent teacher meeting and the teacher will tell oh, your child talks a lot in class. Ever had this? Your child is non-stop chatterbox. Oh, this child is not talking one word in the house but this talking non-stop in the school. So two personalities, okay. So you must know your children. This is very important because we think kids are something, but when they're in their friend's circle they're something else. Okay, and unless you spend time with them, you will not be able to know who they really are. Okay.

Speaker 1:

Proverbs 22, verse 6, says direct your children onto the right path and when they are old, they will not leave it. Similarly, parents must know that if their children are going to raise, if they're going to raise their kids in godliness and lead them into god's plan for their life proverbs 22, 6, in another version it says train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. In the way he should go can also be translated as his way or his bend, ok. So if you talk about a bow and an arrow? Ok, it says the. The word way comes from a Hebrew word which is used for launching a bow and an arrow. Ok, so if an archer has to shoot an arrow, the tension that he is going to create by pulling the string has to align with the natural bend of the bow. Otherwise, the bow will break because of the tension that you are creating in order to release the arrow. Okay, so what is this natural bend that we're talking about? It is nothing.

Speaker 1:

But what is your child's aptitude? If your child is horrible in maths, don't expect them to become an engineer and architect. Okay, if your child is very bad with languages, then don't expect them to do a PhD in linguistics. I'm just saying you know your kids, so don't put pressure on your kids for which they have not made up. Okay. If they are inclined to something, encourage them in a similar manner and they will be the best version.

Speaker 1:

Okay, I have seen many kids struggle. Okay, because they want to be something else. The parents want them to be something else. There is a conflict. Parents, you have got your chance in your life to be what you wanted to be. If you couldn't do it, sorry for you, but don't put that pressure on your kids for them to do what you couldn't do.

Speaker 1:

When I went to school in the US, I had, you know, friends with me who were 50 years going back to school. Maybe that's a good idea if you want to do it again, but don't put pressure on your kids to go do or fulfill your unfulfilled dreams. Yes, sometimes you know you could just laugh it off as a joke, but there are many young children If you sit and talk to them. My father wants me to be this, my mother wants me to be this and I'm stuck here. Let your kid do what they want to do. They are the ones, it's their life and they will be happy. Otherwise, they will just go to work just like a robot and there will be no happiness in their life whatsoever. And as a parent, even they may be making lots of money, there will be no satisfaction.

Speaker 1:

You heard of that story of the man, the cafe coffee day owner, who just left his car and just went into the sea. And what did he do? Did he have anything less? He built a coffee empire, but there was no satisfaction in his life. Therefore, he chose to end it. Okay, and that's not what we want for our kids? We want the best, okay. So aligning them to their natural bend is also very, very important.

Speaker 1:

Okay, I'm quickly going to share a couple of stories from the Bible. I don't want you to turn there because we are already running late. I'm going to talk about Salome. Salome is the mother of James and John. Okay, they also call her the sister of Mary. Okay, that makes her an aunt of Jesus.

Speaker 1:

Okay, salome was a smart woman. She was the wife of Zebedee. Okay, salome was a smart woman. She was the wife of Zebedee, who was a fisherman. He had a fishing business. Okay. But they say Salome had two headstrong boys. Jesus called them thunder boys because they were very impulsive. Okay, had a very short temperament. Okay. But Jesus chose them and Salome was the one who encouraged her kids to pursue after God, not go after Zebedee's business, but she encouraged her kids to pursue after Jesus. She comes to Jesus and she says one very, you know, silly statement. She says, jesus, when your kingdom is established, I want my son to be on the right and the left. And Jesus says Mary, you, salome. It's not for us to decide who sits where, but look at her desire. You know other women will desire. Oh, my son has to make money, but what is she desiring? That her kids be at the right and the left hand of Jesus. So she was such a mother. So she raised these boys to be, you know, godly and to run after God.

Speaker 1:

We also have one very terrible example in the Bible, the example of Jezebel. Yes, jezebel was a Baal worshipper, the wife of King Ahab. Okay, a very jealous woman, a very wild woman. Okay, was a murderer, yes, okay, and her children also turned out in the same way, just like the mother. So Jezebel had three kids. Her oldest son was also a devout worshipper of Baal, and her daughter was a murderess, just like her. And her second son was as corrupt as Jezebel. Okay, jezebel was just the opposite of all that God intends for a woman and a mother to be. Her evil influence upon her husband and children was very real. So we want more Salome's in the house and not the spirit of Jezebel.

Speaker 1:

Okay, I'll close with one last story about Hudson Taylor. How many of you heard of Hudson Taylor? Hudson Taylor was a missionary that went to China from Britain. Okay, he lived. Can I have the picture of Hudson Taylor please? Okay, he lived in the 1800s to early 1900s, okay, and he was one of the first missionaries to inland China.

Speaker 1:

He grew up in a Christian home, but during his teenage years he turned away from Christ. His mother, amelia, was spending a few days with a close friend couple of miles away, and she had a very strong, intense knowing in her heart that she needs to go into her closet and start interceding for her son, hudson. So she went into the room and she locked the door and resolved not to leave the room until her prayer was answered. And here is what Hudson Taylor says about his mother. He says hour after hour that dear mother pleaded until at length she could pray no longer. Dear mother pleaded until at length she could pray no longer, but was constrained to praise for God, for the Holy Spirit taught her already what she was praying was accomplished the conversion of her only son.

Speaker 1:

Meanwhile, in the afternoon, while his mother was praying, 70 miles away, hudson Taylor was at home alone. He came across his father's study looking for something to read, and he found a pamphlet called the Gospel Pamphlet. He opened it, thinking it might have some interesting stories, and read the phases, the finished work of Christ. That phrase struck him. Here are his own words about what happened next, Holy Spirit, that there was nothing in the world to be done but to fall down at the knees of Jesus and accept him as his savior. So, even as the mother was praying, 70 miles away, hudson Taylor had this experience where he surrendered his life to God, and this man went on to become a missionary and went into China to teach the word of God. There may be many Hudson Taylors here. There may be many Catherine Coolmans here. It's the mothers who need to pray and activate those gifts in your kids, my friends.