Baptist City Blog

Jeremiah 39:1-2

“In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, came Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army against Jerusalem, and they besieged it. And in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the ninth day of the month, the city was broken up.”

Retreating is always a sign that you’re losing a battle. During the Battle of Monmouth, George Washington came across troops from Major General Charles Lee as they retreated from battle. George Washington was appalled by the troops retreating and demanded from Lee why the retreat was ordered. He found the answer from Lee was unsatisfactory, so he ordered his troops to go forward against the retreating force, which eventually led to the British troops retreating in defeat. Though Washington saw troops that were besieged and broken, he still went forward and won a monumental battle in the American Revolution.

We find in the verses above that Judah was besieged and the city broken by Nebuchadrezzar’s army. The result of this besiegement led to many of the people fleeing. Yet, there were a group of poor people who would not leave their city, and would rather die than to be under bondage to this king. This action led God to allow them to stay in the city because they trusted Him.

Do you find times in your life when you feel like you are besieged and broken? It is always very tempting to sound the retreat, but you must not. Just like Washington knew that forward is the direction to go when fighting, you must not let the Devil’s attack cause you to sound a retreat in your Christian life.

When you are besieged and broken by health, let me encourage you to keep on going. Just like those who stayed in Judah trusted God, you must trust Him and not sound a retreat. Your health may seem to be breaking down, but let me encourage you to keep going and not sound a retreat.

When finances seem to have besieged and broken you, don’t give up. You may not know how you are going to pay your bills, but there is a God in Heaven Who is watching and seeing if you will trust Him.

When the world has besieged and broken you with their temptation, don’t quit! It can become weary at times trying to fight the world, and you may see others sounding the retreat, but you must keep going forward because you are on the winning side.

I don’t know what your situation is that you face today, but let me encourage you to keep on going. In times of besiegement and when the enemy is trying to break you, keep trusting God and He will bless you. Victory never comes through times of ease, but through besiegement and brokenness. While others retreat and give up, you must keep going forward and trust God’s Word that He will never fail you. Don’t let the retreat of others discourage you. Trust God and you will see the victory.

Jeremiah 32:23

"And they came in, and possessed it; but they obeyed not thy voice, neither walked in thy law; they have done nothing of all that thou commandedst them to do: therefore thou hast caused all this evil to come upon them:"

You will often hear a young person say, "I'm not doing anything wrong." With this statement they think they can get out of trouble. The problem lies in the matter that it was not that they did anything wrong, but that they didn't do what they were supposed to do.

This was one of the problems with Israel that sent them into captivity. In the verse above, God tells how He gave them their land to possess, a land that flowed with milk and honey. Yet, when they entered the land, they didn't do what they were supposed to do. It wasn't that they lived a life of rebellion at first, it was that they didn't obey the voice of the LORD. They simply omitted what they were supposed to do. They were supposed to conquer all the land, but they conquered some of the land. They were to be faithful to worship the LORD on a regular basis, but they stopped worshipping the LORD as they were commanded. God was showing that it was not what they were doing, but it was what they were not doing that caused His anger to be upon them.

Too many Christians go through life and think that they are not bad people because they are not doing any wrong; however, it is not that they are living a "wicked" life that is the problem, it is that they are not doing anything for God with their life. Sins of omission are just as bad as sins of commission. We must always remember that if one person has a right to stop doing their duties, then everyone has a right to stop doing what they are supposed to do. If one person has the right to stop doing their responsibility in the church, then the preacher has a right to stop preaching, the pianist can stop playing, the song leader can stop leading, the Sunday school teacher can stop teaching, the usher can stop ushering, the church secretary can stop typing and the greeter can stop greeting. We must understand that it is not always what we do that matters, but what we don't do.

Let me take this one other direction. In a marriage it is not always what you are doing that causes problems, but what you're not doing. You may not be running around on your spouse or looking at filthy pictures to cause the problems in your marriage. Most marriage problems are caused by one spouse who is not doing what they are supposed to do. It could be the husband not leading in the home like he should. It could be the wife not following like she should. It could be the husband not getting involved in parenting like he should. It could be the wife not meeting her husband's needs like she should. Most marriage problems are simply a spouse not doing something that they should be doing.

You must be careful that you don't fall for Satan's trap of omitting your obligations. It is not always what you are doing that causes your problems, but what you're not doing. No matter what area of life, you need to make sure that you are not only not doing what you shouldn't do, but that you do what you are supposed to do. Omission is just as bad as commission. If you don't do what you're not supposed to do, and do what you're supposed to do, then you will find that God will be pleased with your life. Right now, look at your life and see if there are some things that you are not doing that you should be doing, and decide not to let omission be a part of your life.

Jeremiah 17:6

"For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited."

Too often we can be guilty of turning life into a desert when it could be a well of blessings. Jeremiah made the statement that the heath lived in the parched places because it didn't see the good around it. That is sad because the heath has a choice to enjoy the good, but because it doesn't see the good it lives in parched, dried up places.

I find that many people are just like the heath in that they never see the good in any situation, and turn their life into a parched dry desert. This is a horrible way to live. All around you there is good that you can enjoy, but if you are not careful, you will live your life in the parched places of the negative.

Let me ask you, is the negative all you see in your spouse? Many a person has driven their spouse away by constantly berating them and seeing the negative. I don't think anyone means it, but it happens on a regular basis. Many people have turned their marriage into parched places because all they see is negative. Do you ever see the good in your spouse? Let me take this a step further and ask you, have to told your spouse about the good you see? I believe often we see the good, but fail to compliment and only criticize. If you don't want your marriage to become a parched place of negative feelings and comments, then you need to purposely look for the good and be sure to compliment your spouse about the good they do.

Likewise, parents need to be careful not to turn their relationship with their children into parched places. There are times when I truly feel sorry for children as I watch their parents constantly criticize and pick at them. Parents, if you are not careful, you will drive your child completely away from you because they get tired of living in the parched places of the negative. You need to work at praising your children more than you criticize. Don't get me wrong, you need to correct them when they do wrong, but you also need to be sure to praise them when they do right. Many parents have lived a life of regret because they drove their children away with their negative comments. Every parent should strive to make their relationship with their children a garden of blessings and not a desert of parched places.

Furthermore, church members need to be careful that they don't turn their church into a parched place. Do you see all the negative of your church, or do you see the positive? Church is to be an enjoyable place, and you should be careful about always pointing out the negative. If all you do is dwell on the negative of your church, then every sermon you hear and ministry in which you are involved will become a parched place.

Simply put, go overboard on looking for the good and complimenting people about the good they do. It is natural to point out the negative, so you will have to purposely force yourself to compliment the good in every person and place that you see. Let me challenge you to give your spouse, children and friends five compliments today. Then make it a habit that everyday to compliment and thank them for the good they do. By doing this you will have a better chance of not turning life into parched places.

Jeremiah 13:23

"Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil."

Jeremiah asked whether an Ethiopian could change his skin? This seems like a foolish question as anyone knows that you can't change the color of your own skin for that is how you were made. If the Ethiopian wanted to change the color of his skin, that would be physically impossible. He also asked whether the leopard could take his spots away. Again, a leopard in no way can remove its spots. Those spots are part of its makeup. Jeremiah asked these questions because he was trying to show Judah that they had bad habits that needed to change.

Changing your bad habits can be as difficult as changing the spots of a leopard. No matter who you are or what you do in life, you have habits that seem impossible to break. The one difference between changing the spots of a leopard and breaking your bad habits is that there is a way to overcome bad habits. The way to overcome bad habits will only come through Jesus Christ. There are three ways to cure bad habits.

First, there must be resistance to cure bad habits. Just like yielding to temptation will strengthen a bad habit, resisting the bad habit weakens it. God says in James 4:7, "Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you." Though it may be difficult to resist your habit, it is still possible through the power of the Holy Spirit. When you yield to anger, then anger is strengthened, but resist anger by temperance and it is weakened. Lying is strengthened when you yield to it, but it is weakened when you resist it and tell the truth. Adultery and fornication are strengthened when you yield to them, but they are weakened when you resist them and practice abstinence. Whatever the sin is, it is only strengthened when you yield to it. It all comes down to a choice. You have a choice to yield and resist.

Second, you cure bad habits by educating yourself about the good habits. Romans 12:21 says, "Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good." God says the way to overcome evil habits is to do good. Romans 16:19 says, "...I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple concerning evil." Notice, God is teaching that the wiser you are about good, the less power that evil has in your life. If you want to cure bad habits, then you need to be sure to learn as much about the opposite of your habit. The more you learn about the opposite of your bad habit, the better you will be able to do the good.

Third, you cure bad habits through prayer. 1 John 1:9 says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." Your only hope of overcoming bad habits is to daily pray and ask for God's strength to overcome them. Always remember that the power to overcome bad is found through Christ. 1 John 1:9 shows us that God is the One Who cleanses us from sin. You must ask God to help you overcome your bad habit.

Christian, you may think that your sin is like the spots on a leopard, but you have the power within you to overcome those spots of bad habits. That power within you is through giving your effort to overcome it, and then asking God to give you the added strength to do what you cannot do. In these three steps you will find that you can cure your bad habits.

Isaiah 37:30

"And this shall be a sign unto thee, Ye shall eat this year such as groweth of itself; and the second year that which springeth of the same: and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruit thereof."

Helping someone get established is always a worthy thing to do. One of the mistakes many people make when helping someone is that they don't cut the apron strings which results in the person never establishing themselves on their own. The purpose of help is not to have them constantly run back to their source for the rest of their lives, but it is to get their feet on solid ground so they can make it on their own.

When God helped Judah reestablish themselves after facing judgment, He told them that He would eventually cut the apron strings. You can see from the verse above that God helped them in the beginning, but eventually they had to step up and do some things on their own. In this verse, God shows principles He uses to help people, and these principles will be good for everyone to follow when helping others.

First, the purpose of helping someone is not so they will rely upon you forever. Whenever you start helping someone, you must decide how long you are going to help them. You will notice that God put a timeline on how long He would help Judah. God knew that this timeline was not just for Him, but it was for Judah as well. They needed to know that this help was not going to last forever. Whenever you decide to help someone, they need to know that the help will eventually stop. They need to know that you expect them to eventually be able to take care of themselves. Knowing this upfront will not only help them to start doing something immediately, but it will also help you to have a point when you cut the apron strings.

Second, the one receiving the help is to work from the beginning. You will notice in the verse above that though God was going to make the crops grow, the people of Judah still had to care for those crops. God was not going to weed the garden. He was not going to water the garden. God wanted them to get busy from the beginning.

Just because you are going to help someone doesn't mean that they should not do anything. God's Word still specifies that a person should work before they eat. Parents, don't make the grave mistake of doing everything for your children. They need to be sure to do some things themselves. You may help them, but they still need to have some labor involved in what they get. Help does not mean that they can be lazy, but it's purpose is simply to help them get established. The whole purpose of the help is to give you time to train them how to do things on their own. Whether it's a business, church or a person helping someone, use the helping time to train them to step out on their own.

Third, when it's time to cut the apron strings then cut them. This is one of the hardest things for many to do. Because they have so much involved in helping someone, they want to continue to help them, but you are not doing them a favor by keeping the apron strings attached. It is natural for the apron strings to be cut. God intended for everyone to make it on their own. Don't think it's cold or not compassionate to cut the apron strings. It's more compassionate to cut those strings because that way they will do it on their own.

There is nothing wrong with helping people. In fact, I believe it's right to help people get started, but the help must end at some point. Always remember that the purpose of helping someone is to teach them to do things on their own. You will receive great satisfaction from your help when you see them doing what you trained them to do while you helped them. This is a natural process, so don't be afraid to cut the apron strings.

At Peace With Yourself

Isaiah 26:3

"Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee."

It can never be said enough the importance of being at peace with one's self. Throughout my lifetime it is saddening to see those who have prematurely ended their life who seem to have everything that a person would want. Yet, it really doesn't matter how much money, fame or possessions one has, what really matters is that a person must be at peace with themselves if they want to enjoy life.

In the verse above, you will find that God gives us the formula for being at peace with yourself. God knows what it will take for you to be at peace with yourself for He is the One Who made you. God knows what is best for you. He knows your makeup and what will cause you to be at peace. The verse above gives us this formula in reverse order. God starts the verse by showing us the product, but He ends the verse by showing us the foundation.

First, your trust must be placed in God to be at peace with yourself. This is a two-fold trust. First, you will never be at perfect peace with yourself without trusting Christ as your Saviour. This is ultimately where it all starts. Inside of every individual is a desire to be at peace with their maker. You can only be at peace with God by trusting Jesus Christ as your personal Saviour. You can try religion, works or your own way to be at peace with God, but these will fail. Your complete trust for salvation must be placed in Jesus Christ. You will never be at peace with yourself without trusting Christ as Saviour. Furthermore, your trust with all you do must be placed in God. You must come to a point in your life where you trust God for everything. Too many people try to place their trust in finances or job security, but you must trust Christ for all you do. On whom you place your trust is the foundation of being at peace with yourself.

Second, you must fix yourself upon Christ to be at peace with yourself. Stop placing your eyes on man, and place your eyes upon Christ. One of the greatest reasons people are so insecure is because they are so worried with what man thinks about them. Stop worrying about what man thinks of you and be more concerned with what Christ knows about you. Christians who place their loyalties upon man and institutions and not upon Christ only will find themselves disappointed. Christian, man will change, and because they change you will never be at peace with yourself if you place your focus on them. God is unchangeable, and His unchangeableness will give you peace if you keep your focus on Him.

Third, you must let God be the source of your thoughts. The word "mind" is talking about your imaginations. In other words, when your thoughts are wrapped in Christ, you will be at peace with yourself. Christian, you must protect what influences your mind. God should be the only One Whom you allow to influence your mind. Let God be your influence for your dreams, desires and wants.

Notice, when you do these things, God will guard your peace of mind. The verse above says that God will keep you in "perfect peace" if you will fix your mind and trust on Him. You won't have to worry about being at peace with yourself because God will guard that peace for you. Every day you should yield your mind to Christ and ask Him to guide your thoughts and imaginations. When your mind is yielded to Christ, you will find yourself being at peace with yourself because you are at peace with God.

Transforming Power

Psalm 119:130
“The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple.”

Throughout my life I have heard of some miraculous stories of people who were transformed from a life of sin to a great tool whom God used. I recall as a child a man who grew up in the gangs of Chicago, but God changed him and turned him into an evangelist. You read in the Scriptures of many whose lives were literally transformed into a new image. Probably the greatest transformation happened in the life of the Apostle Paul. Before he was saved he was bent on killing Christians, but after salvation he was transformed into a man who was bent on keeping people out of Hell. There is nothing more stirring than to see lives transformed into something great.

I find in the verse above from whence the power of transformation comes. Too many people look to social programs for the power of transformation, but as well intentioned as these programs are they fail miserably. Many look to associations for those transforming powers, but again they find that no association can transform lives. The Scriptures are the only thing that can transform lives from the inside out. Most programs try to transform people from the outside in, but that is not where true transformation comes, it starts on the inside and works its way out.

Notice in the verse above it says, “The entrance of thy words giveth light;…” When God’s Word enters into an individual, those Words start transforming that person from the inside out. You may not immediately see the transformation, but it is working. It works like medicine that cures a disease from the inside out. You won’t see the immediate affects, but as the transformation continues, you will see a changed life. Only the entrance of God’s Word will make that transformation from the inside out.

In verse 133, you will notice that the transforming powers of God’s Word will guide the steps of an individual. The reason God’s Word can guide the steps is because His Word shines a light on the right pathway of life. When God’s Word enters into your heart, the right pathway of life begins to make sense. Before you heard God’s Word, the right pathway did not seem to make sense and wasn’t helpful, but His Word revealed the pathway on your life, and that made everything clear.

You will notice in verse 135, God’s Word transformed the countenance of the psalmist. When a person begins to see the right path, their countenance will become what it ought to be. Only God’s Word can do the transforming.

The final step of the transformation comes when a person’s perspective changes from themselves to others. In verse 136, the psalmist was burdened to tears because he saw people who didn’t obey the Word of God. He knew what God’s Word could do for their lives. When transformation is complete in the life of an individual, you will always notice that they will be concerned for others.

Christian, this whole transformation happens because God’s Word entered into the heart. Your life will never be transformed into the image of Christ until you allow God’s Word to influence you every day. I challenge you to allow the greatest power of transformation to be a daily part of your life, and that power is the Word of God. It will change your heart, attitude and outlook on life. Stop looking for some other way to transform lives and realize the true powers of transformation are in the pages of the Word of God. Whether it is your life or another’s that needs to be transformed, always remember that it starts with the entrance of God’s Word into one’s life.

Whet the Edge

Ecclesiastes 10:10
“If the iron be blunt, and he do not whet the edge, then must he put to more strength: but wisdom is profitable to direct.”

When I lived in West Virginia, our home had a wood stove that we used to heat the home in the winter time. Most of the time, my wood was already split into the size that I needed to put into the wood stove, but every once in awhile I had to use an axe to split my wood. As long as the axe was sharp, splitting the wood was not difficult. Sure, it was work, but work has never hurt anyone; however, splitting wood with a dull axe will wear you out because you are having to try and use your strength to split the wood. If the axe head is sharp, then the axe is doing most of the work, but when it is dull, you have to put more strength to it and still not get the same results that you should.

In the Christian life I have found many people who are swinging their spiritual axes with a blunt edge. Sunday school teachers are teaching their class with a blunt edge. Bus workers are running their busses with a blunt edge. Church workers are working their ministries with a blunt edge. Sadly, there are preachers who are pastoring their church with a blunt edge. They are having to do all the work, and yet they are not getting the results they could get if they would whet, or sharpen, their spiritual axe. Let me show you some things that sharpen the spiritual axe.

First, spending time daily in the Scriptures will whet your spiritual edge. If you don’t spend time with God in the Scriptures, you will find that your spiritual edge will become dull. You are not going to get the spiritual sustenance you need without spending time in God’s Word.

Second, spending time in prayer will whet your spiritual edge. Christian, you can run in the Christian life for so long on your own strength, but eventually you are going to have to spend time in prayer to get God’s strength. Prayer has a way of sharpening your spiritual edge. You will not be as sharp as you are supposed to be in the Christian life without whetting your edge.

Third, getting rid of sin will whet your edge. The quickest way to make the Christian life dull is to let sin put a blunt edge on your spiritual life. You can fake anything for awhile, but eventually sin will make your edge so dull that you will never be able to do for God what you are supposed to do.

Fourth, soul winning will whet your edge. There is nothing like leading someone to Christ that puts the edge back into the Christian life. Seeing someone you led to Christ come to church and get baptized, and then watching them grow in the LORD will put an edge on your Christian life that many don’t have. I promise you that the soul winner will have more of a spiritual edge than anyone else.

Finally, being filled with the Holy Spirit will whet the edge. All of the things above will only go so far in whetting your edge, but allowing the Holy Spirit of God to empower you to do His work will give you a razor sharp edge. It makes the work so much easier when the Holy Spirit is empowering you.

Let me ask you, is your spiritual edge blunt in life? In what area is your spiritual axe dull? A Christian who whets His spiritual axe is the Christian who will accomplish the most for Christ. I implore you to whet your edge for the sake of Christ. Be sure that you allow these things to keep you spiritually sharp so you can accomplish the work that God placed you on this Earth to do.

Being a Blessing to God

Psalm 103:2

"Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:"

We often talk about how God was a blessing to us, but I wonder how often we are a blessing to God. Can you imagine how God must feel when He is good to His children and they are never a blessing to Him? This is sad! You would think of all the people whom we would try to be a blessing to that God would be at the top of the list. Yet, one the most forgotten person in many Christian's lives is God.

Psalm 103 often says, "Bless the LORD,..." Do you understand that God desires that you would be a blessing to Him? God would not say this phrase eighteen times in the Scriptures if He didn't want you to be a blessing to Him. In Psalm 103 we find there are five ways that you can be a blessing to God.

First, you can be a blessing to God by serving Him with all your being. Notice God says, "Bless the LORD, O my soul,..." It is a blessing to God when He sees His children serve them with everything that they have. Whether that is little or much, it blesses God when you give your all. He doesn't ask you to serve Him with the capacity that someone else has, but He asks you to serve Him with your capacity. When you serve Him with all your soul, it blesses God.

Second, you can be a blessing to God when you revere His name. In verse 1, He says to "bless his holy name." Does it bother you when someone takes God's name in vain? It should! God's name is not a curse word! You should be very careful about using God's name in an adverse manner. Always use God's name in a reverential manner.

Third, you can be a blessing to God when you remember the benefits that He has given to you. Isn't it sad that we get more excited over the benefits our employer gives us than the benefits we get from being saved? God says that we should not forget "all his benefits." When is the last time you stopped and simply thanked God for what He has given you? This is a blessing to God when someone takes the time to simply thank Him. Don't get so busy that you forget to remember the benefits of being saved.

Fourth, you can be a blessing to God when you keep His commandments. 3 John 1:4 says, "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth." Notice, it makes God happy when you obey the truths of the Word of God. Keeping God's commandments is not only good for your spiritual well-being, but it blesses God when you keep them. If there is any reason for you to obey God's commandments then it should be because you want to be a blessing to Him.

Fifth, you can be a blessing to God by being a soul winner. In verse 21 it says that it is a blessing to God to those who "do his pleasure." One of the dearest things to the heart of God is seeing souls saved. Do you realize that every time you lead someone to Jesus Christ that it's a blessing to God? Christian, if there is any reason for you to be a soul winner, it is so that you can be a blessing to God.

I challenge you not to be selfish about trying to get God's blessings, but work on being a blessing to Him. I promise you that if you will be a blessing to God, He will be a blessing to you. Always remember that God says in Luke 6:38, "Give, and it shall be given unto you;..." You be a blessing to God and He will be a blessing to you.

Job's Lessons for Child Rearing

Job 42:14

"He had also seven sons and three daughters. And he called the name of the first, Jemima; and the name of the second, Kezia; and the name of the third, Kerenhappuch."

We can learn a lot about child rearing from Job. When reading about this godly man we learn that he reared children who were very good children. Yet, after losing his children and enduring the horrible trials that came his way, he had ten more children. Three of them were girls. I don't know why the Scriptures don't give us the names of the sons, but in the names of the daughters you find three valuable lessons in rearing children. Let me show you these lessons.

He named his first daughter "Jemima," which means "dove." This is interesting because in the Scriptures the dove represents two things. First it is a symbol of peace. You will recall that Noah released a dove to see if it could find dry land, and when it did he knew that God was at peace with man. It is imperative that you teach your children to be at peace with God. The first way they need to be at peace with God is by accepting Jesus Christ as their Saviour. I believe it is very important that you start teaching your children at a young age about salvation and its importance. Every day you should pray with your children that they would understand what salvation is all about and accept Christ at an early age. The second way they need to be a peace with God is by doing His will for their life. Teach them to obey the Scriptures and do what God wants them to do. Whenever they obey God, they will be at peace with Him.

The dove also represents the Holy Spirit. It is highly important that you teach your children the need of being yielded to the Spirit of God. One of the greatest ways to teach them is to be yielded to God's Holy Spirit yourself. Show them how to regularly pray and yield themselves to Him. This is important if God is going to use them mightily.

Job named his second daughter "Kezia," which means "cassia." Cassia was a plant that its leaves were used in medicine and for aromatic oil. Job was showing us the importance of developing your child's personality. After you get the spiritual right, then you need to work on their personality. Make sure they have a personality that is Christ honoring. They should learn to smile and enjoy life. Of course, they are going to learn their personality from you. If you have a poor personality, then they will develop a poor personality. In all reality, you need to make sure that your personality is right so they have an example to follow. Your children will go further in life if they have a personality that is Christ honoring.

Job name his third daughter "Kerenhappuch," which means "horn of cosmetic." Now you will notice this is the last area with which parents should work with their children. Your children need to learn to properly groom themselves. They need to learn to dress properly. They need to learn how to iron their own clothes. They should learn how to properly comb or brush their hair. I know this sounds like the obvious, but sadly most children do not learn proper grooming habits. Many times they don't learn how to mix and match their clothing. It is important for your child to learn proper grooming.

Let me point out that the order Job named his children is the same order of importance we should place on each of these. Sadly, too many parents are more concerned with the cosmetic side of their children when they need to be concerned with the development of spiritual and their personality. All of these areas are important for your children to be well-rounded in life, but make sure you keep them in their proper order of importance.