Our Favorite Proverbs: Proverbs 22:6, Grow Your Child with the Grain

by Marilynn Chadwick

“Train up a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent], and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”

Proverbs 22:6 AMPC

Education should be a delight, not drudgery. It’s the same with spiritual training. Children learn differently. Research has shown that some of what were previously thought to be learning disabilities are often just different ways of processing information. The Lord of the Universe seems never to tire of creating unique humans. At birth, every person is “wired” differently from the nearly eight billion people on the planet—and from every other person who has ever lived! Astounding, isn’t it?

So as parents, it makes sense that in addition to discovering our child’s unique beauty, we should experiment to see how they best learn. What makes them tick. The kindest way to raise our children is “in keeping with their gift or bent” (Proverbs 22:6 AMPC). Our best clues come simply from watching what they naturally love to do.

Our three now-grown children were all very different. Bethany was multitalented and loved to learn. She played volleyball and basketball, but she was also passionate about languages. In third grade, she chose to attend a French Immersion magnet school where English wasn’t even spoken. She learned everything from grammar to long division in French. It’s easy to see why she now loves educating her children at home.

David, our older son, was shooting wads of trash through lampshades at age two. It’s no surprise basketball grabbed his heart at an early age. Basketball scholarships paid for both his undergraduate and master’s degrees in college. We’ve watched basketball, along with his good math mind and strategic business acumen, open up doors to his career path in the sports world.

Our youngest, Michael, was talented in a variety of sports but gravitated to swimming. He carved his own unique trail as a standout collegiate swimmer and eventually a professional swimmer and world record holder. Our determined Michael used to say, “Swimming found me!” His athletic gifts and work ethic, combined with his high “EQ,” or emotional intelligence, have made him an effective leader who now expresses his gifts through a ministry calling.

David and I tried to “grow” our three children “with their grain.” By God’s grace, as they’ve gotten older, they’ve not left the foundation of that training. More importantly, they’ve held tightly to their faith in Jesus.

Today’s Moment of Hope is adapted from Woman of Valor, Discovering the Courage and Strength God Gave You by Marilynn Chadwick.

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Our Favorite Proverbs: Proverbs 31:10, Part Nurturer, Part Warrior

by Marilynn Chadwick

“Who can find a woman of valor?”

Proverbs 31:10a OJB

A woman of valor is a warrior at heart. She fights for her faith, her family, and her community. But sometimes, her toughest battles are for her God-given dreams. I wonder if some wars are harder than others because the enemy knows the stakes are so high.

I think back to our long years of infertility and my fierce fight to have a baby. I couldn’t have known it at the time, but I was waging a battle not just for our firstborn daughter, but also for our next baby, a son. Then another son. And now, twelve grandchildren and counting.

Our daughter once said something to me which made me pause: “Mama, you didn’t know when you were going through all those years of infertility that you were also fighting for all these little people to be born,” pointing to our grandchildren.

Perhaps my fight was so fierce because the enemy wanted what I had—the promise of children and grandchildren who would glorify God. And ultimately, generations beyond those.

But I had something else the enemy wanted. And so do you. He wanted to steal my testimony. He wanted to make it impossible for me to tell the miraculous story of God’s healing that enabled me to have those babies. He wanted to rob me of the chance to encourage others who are waiting for answers to their own prayers.

Quite simply, the devil wants to steal the story God is weaving through your dream. Or through this trial you're enduring so bravely. He wants to steal your testimony. In the end, he wants to steal God's glory.

Dear friend, don’t give up. God is faithful. One day you will have a story to tell. A story that will cause others to yearn to know this wonderful God Who is the Giver of Dreams.

Today’s Moment of Hope is adapted from Woman of Valor, Discovering the Courage and Strength God Gave You by Marilynn Chadwick. Click here to order your copy today!

Our Favorite Proverbs: Proverbs 31:10, 28, Her Children Rise Up

by Marilynn Chadwick

“A woman of valor, who can find? Her children rise up and call her blessed”

Proverbs 31:10, 28 JPS

The Proverbs 31 “woman of valor” must have had some warrior in her. After all, the Hebrew term chayil, translated “valor,” is a military term.

I once asked my husband how he saw me as a fighter. David thought for a minute and said: “You have fought so hard for our children’s dreams.”

It’s true. I fought harder to help our kids reach their dreams than I ever fought for my own. This quote says it best: “Reaching your own dreams is fulfilling—helping someone else reach their dreams is sublime.” And when that “someone else” happens to be your own children, it’s joy on steroids.

I wonder if the Proverbs 31 woman of valor discovered this same joy in seeing her children succeed. We’re told, “her children rise up and call her blessed,” (Proverbs 31:28 ESV). The Hebrew word, qum, translated “rise up” is very strong. It means, “to accomplish, to build, to establish, to strengthen, to succeed.”

I’d like to think her children were now grown, happy, and fulfilled. They had reached their dreams, in part, because of their mother’s impact. She had taught them. Nurtured, clothed, and cared for them. Perhaps they saw their mom in prayer, seeking the Lord and fighting for their dreams.

The Proverbs 31 woman poured her life into her children, so I can imagine her satisfaction as she watched them flourish. Nothing makes me happier than when my children, and now grandchildren, “rise up” and succeed.

To love our children well calls for self-sacrifice and courage. What are some ways you can encourage your children to dream big? Or is there another child, not your own, who desperately needs your encouragement?

“Tread lightly around the dreams of a child,” Mother Teresa once said. “You may be treading on the dreams of God.” As women of valor, let’s dare to fight for the dreams of the next generation.

Today’s Moment of Hope is adapted from Woman of Valor, Discovering the Courage and Strength God Gave You by Marilynn Chadwick.

Click here to order your copy today!