DCLM Daily Manna 19 December 2024 Devotional By Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — The God-Fearing Family
TOPIC: The God-Fearing Family (DCLM Daily Manna 19 December 2024)
KEY VERSE: “Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways” (Psalm 128:1).
TEXT: Psalms 128:1-6 (KJV)
1 Blessed is every one that feareth the Lord; that walketh in his ways.
2 For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.
3 Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.
4 Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the Lord.
5 The Lord shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.
6 Yea, thou shalt see thy children’s children, and peace upon Israel.
MESSAGE:
Jonathan Edwards was a Puritan preacher in the 1700s and a great one, too. He preached the unforgettable sermon, Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. Edwards married his wife, Sara, in 1727, and they were blessed with eleven children. On the family front, he was an impactful father. He would spend an hour every night conversing with his family and praying over each child. One hundred and fifty years after his death, one Albert Winship conducted research revealing the great legacy Edwards and his wife, Sarah, passed on to their eleven children. The legacy includes one U.S. Vice-President, one Dean of a law school, one dean of a medical school, three U.S. Senators, three governors, three mayors, thirteen college presidents, thirty judges, sixty doctors, sixty-five professors, seventy-five Military officers, eighty public office holders, a hundred lawyers, a hundred clergymen, and 285 college graduates. The list is endless. This was as a result of the godly lifestyles of the parents.
In our text, the psalmist spoke about the rewards for those that fear the Lord and walk in His ways. He said they shall eat the fruits of their labour and it shall be well with them. They would be blessed with stable and flourishing families. Their wives shall be blessed with children aplenty. The Lord shall bless them with long life to see generations of their children, and they shall reap from God’s goodness and peace on their land.
Only God has the portrait of an ideal, happy family. The so-called modern family idealized by popular media is a far cry from this picture. In fact, the chickens are coming home to roost. The rejection of God in the family and the consequences of rebellion against His word in society are haunting our world already.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Sow the seed of godliness in your children and reap from it in later years.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR
Ezekiel 6-8
Deeper Life Daily Manna was written by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
