Influential? The 100 year test

Having just finished a delicious dinner salad concocted with leftovers from the previous week's dinners, it's time to reflect on the day's sermon.

We sang from the Trinity Hymnal: #295, #30, #301, and #488.

Genesis 18:1-19 was read and the congregation was exhorted with twelve principles which, if applied, are likely to yield far-reaching effects in years to come.

Here's the list.

1) Believe that the people of God have a future - a victorious and glorious one at that. Matt 13

2) Believe that God has entered into a covenant with His people in Christ. Gen 17:7, Ex 20:5-6, Deut 7:9 Jer 37:17-18

3) Multiply - Be fruitful and have a family. Plan to outpopulate the wicked.

4) Create an inheritance - a material one, a spiritual one, an intellectual one, and an economic one. Pv 3:22 Job 27:13

5) Purchase land and keep it in the family. Job is a good example.

6) Obey God's Word when parenting/rearing your children. JCM read from Calvin's commentary on Gen 18:19

7) Give your children a distinctly Christian education. Deut 6:4-9

8) Pray for your children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

9) Work to reconstruct our culture so that it will be less evil for your progeny. Gen 1:28 and Matt 28:18

10) Guide your children in their life choices using Scripture to substantiate your advice. Neh 13:23

11) Teach your children to think *futuristically*. JCM has preached an entire sermon on this topic and it covers the down-side of living only for the moment and not saving. See this sermon on Luke 16 delivered 4/2/06.

12) Pray earnestly to God and beg that He would be faithful to His promises. Is 65:17-19

Application: Around the dinner table, I gave each daughter an opportunity to comment about one of the twelve. We had some lively conversation.

Personal note: I pray for my children; I pray for their future spouses, and I try to pray for their children and grandchildren. It's not easy to do, not *knowing* them or their names. I have some pretty neat family stories and genealogy books, but none which say *I'm praying for my progeny*

Here's a link to one daughter's sermon notes.