Obedience is a Response

 "Obey Me, and I will be your God." Jeremiah 7:23

If I thought long and hard, I could probably recount many times where I was told to do something that I didn't do and realized that I should've listened to begin with.  We could perhaps name certain instances where we've asked our children to obey us, they don't listen, and they regret not listening. Instead of choosing God's way, we follow our own way. The idea of obedience gets a bad reputation. Why? Because it has the connotation of an authoritarian and inflexible dictator-like authority figure who is cold and lacks genuine care. Popular culture seems to value rebellion, bucking against authority, and anything that appears to impose rules. If a corrupt system is in place, then perhaps doing these things are okay. But what about obedience to a loving God. Because the truth is, God is love. Sadly, most people do not have this picture of God. 

Right now I'm in the process of trying to teach my 4 year old the importance of obedience. It's a lesson that needs to be repeated multiple times throughout his life. His understanding of it is different now than when he was younger, so I can introduce deeper concepts that will hopefully make a more meaningful impact on him. As I venture into this intentional process, it's got me thinking, how do we obey? How do we teach our children to obey?

Trust. Establish a warm bond of connection. Because love and trust leads to obedience. We want to make it easy for our children to obey us. We do this by creating a loving environment and having a loving relationship with them. How, spend time, talk to them, listen to them, care for them, be there for them in their most vulnerable moments, encourage them in right doing. Be consistently loving and kind. Predictably so. Know what shows love towards that child and do that so they are assured of your love for them. Help them to know that their Father in heaven loves them more than we ever could and knows what's best and will never fail them. 

Trust comes first, then obedience. In order for people and children to obey, there has to be trust. True and authentic obedience comes from a trusting, loving, willing heart. Forced obedience, is manipulation and control. Children need to learn the value of rules, because not following them can lead to negative consequences. This is ultimately what God wants to protect us from. 

Obeying the right voice makes life easier. We can learn the easier way (by obeying and watching other people's mistakes) or we can learn the harder way by going through the hard knocks of life barely surviving the trauma we inflicted on ourselves due to our own lack of compliance. 

How do we obey God? It is His goodness that draws us towards repentance. It is embracing the righteousness of Christ and putting that on as our clothing. It is knowing that God's love, mercy, and grace compels us to love and obey and honor our savior. It's not hard when we meditate on God's goodness, His grace, His love towards us. 

God's love, that is what draws us. I pray that I would forever be in awe of God's glory. His possibilities, His ability to help me weather through any difficulty. I have confidence in God. He is trustworthy. I don't trust myself, but I trust that God will come through for me and give me the courage to face whatever comes my way. 

Dear Lord, thank you for being my God. I ask in the name of Jesus that you will pour your Holy Spirit and love out in full measure. I ask that I would come to know the depth of your love. May my response be to obey, honor, and praise you so that others can be saved from sin and darkness. Cause me and my household to walk in your way, We acknowledge you as our God. Thank you Lord for hearing this prayer.