Saturday, March 16, 2013

Dan Delzell: Did Your Parents Hinder Your Spiritual Development?

Your parents played a huge role in what you believe today, and what you choose not to believe. Their presence, or their absence, along with their teaching and their training, have all worked to shape you into who you are today. That's not to say those are the only factors, but they certainly play a major role in whether or not you have been connected to God through faith.

You may be someone who discovered God's love "in spite of" what your parents did or didn't do. Their actions, while not helping you get to God, have also not prevented you from trusting in God later in life. It took some time, but you finally made the connection as His grace was extended to you and you were glad to receive it. You might even be one of those people who is raising your children very differently than you were raised, as you teach your children how much God loves them and what He has done to provide the forgiveness of their sins.

Parents can only give their children what they have received, or learned, or experienced. Some parents have experienced "the new birth," and some have not. (see John 3:1-21) Until a person's spirit is brought to life, he remains spiritually "dead." (see Eph. 2:1 and Col. 2:13) No one can begin to develop spiritually if his spirit is dead. It must be made alive first, and then a person can begin to grow toward spiritual maturity. Read more

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