“The rod and rebuke give wisdom, but a child left to himself brings shame to his mother” Proverbs 29:15, NKJV.
My biological father was addicted to crack cocaine for over 20 years and wasn’t present in my life. My mom re-married my stepfather, who came into my life at the right time in my early teens, steering me in the right direction. God used him to teach me a lot of things, from responsibility, confidence, discipline, and hard work. He taught me how to deal with rejection when a girl didn’t like me. He taught me if I didn’t go out there and cut the grass like he asked me to, I can’t expect to use the car. He was tough, but the right way tough. Many times he would hold me hostage for hours (lol) listening to him talk about God and life.
I appreciate all of it now. He didn’t leave me to myself.
Many of the bad choices young men make, especially those with dire consequences, would not be made if they had a man there effectively pouring into them the right things. There is a grave danger when a boy is left to himself. When no one is there to love them. When we as fathers, examples and mentors are present, but we’re really absent, leaving him to himself to understand what is means to be a man. He’s left to himself to figure out how to handle issues, altercations, fears, success, and failures. When left to himself, he can gain a bad understanding and handle things the wrong way. Life is made hard when God never meant it to be.
Do you know a young man that is being left to himself? I challenge you to reach out to them with the love of God today. You can tell the young men that are being left to themselves. If you watch them and listen to them, you will say he’s being left to himself and then step in with guidance. Step in with good understanding. Step in godly wisdom and teach them how to live. There’s nothing wrong with pulling a young man aside and saying here are some things about God and life that I can share with you.
Prayer: Father, thank You for Your word today. I pray you help us to be the best fathers, examples and mentors that we can be. My boys and the young men you have put into my life, help me to not to leave them to themselves. Enlarge my heart to make a difference in a young man’s life. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Study: Proverbs 17:25, 22:6, Jeremiah 4:22, Ephesians 6:1-4
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