To prefer righteousness

"With all eternity hanging in the balance, we fight the fight of faith. Our chief enemy is the Lie that says sin will make our future happier. Our chief weapon is the Truth that says God will make our future happier. And faith is the victory that overcomes the lie, because faith is satisfied with God. The challenge before us then is not merely to do what God says because He is God, but to desire what God says because he is good. The challenge is not merely to pursue righteousness, but to prefer righteousness. The challenge is to get up in the morning and prayerfully meditate on the Scriptures until we experience joy and peace in believing "the precious and very great promises" of God (Rom. 15:13; 2 Peter 1:4). With this joy set before us the commandments of God will not be burdensome (1 John 5:3) and the compensation of sin will appear too brief and too shallow to lure us." - John Piper

Thinking out loud for a few moments...
I've been meditating lately on raising kids that grow into mature believers; kids that grow to love and serve the Lord our God with all their heart, mind, soul, and strength. It started with this article, and then this one, food for thought, but not with answers that wholly satisfy. And then of course, there are mysteries we struggle with, knowing kids that grow to young adults and struggle in their walk, that perhaps turn away from the Lord though we know their parents sincerely sought to raise them up in the nurture and admonition, "the discipline and instruction" (Eph 6:4), of the Lord. I know that the temptation of the world is strong, even for those of us with feet solidly grounded in His truth. I know that deception comes quickly, cunningly.

So knowing that there is no magic potion for growing up kids,
that there's no one foolproof formula for success,
I am thankful that, indeed, we are given these children with a manual and guide, Scripture itself.

The Piper quote reminds me, yet again, how to pray for my children-
that they would have faith that is fully satisfied with God;
that they would "abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit" (Rom 15:13);
that they would "escape the corruption that is in the world" (2Peter 1:4);
that His commandments would not be burdensome (1John 5:3), but rather,
that they would delight themselves in the Lord and commit their way to Him (Ps 37:4-5).

And, it reminds me of my own plea, as I confess my own sin and come humbly before the Lord, which, really, is exactly the same-
that I would not provoke my children to anger (Eph. 6:4);
that I would, too, be fully satified with God,
that as a response of joy to the salvation He offers, we would all prefer righteousness.

...think about such things

One of the first and most enduring lessons on parenting I learned before I had ever birthed a child myself. As members of a bible study that met in the chaplain's home each week, we had a Friday evening front row seat to how he and his wife interacted with, disciplined, and discipled, their children. One evening we joined the conversation in progress. The issue? whether or not to buy the latest in video games. Finally, in response to his son's appeal, "but there's nothing wrong with it," the dad replied, "but what is right with it?"

What is right with it? Because, you know, there are a lot of things that aren't exactly wrong. But then, they aren't exactly right, either. That question, taken from the standard Paul sets in Philippians 4:8-9, has stuck with us ever since, and has been a benchmark as we parent our own kids, even today, nearly 19 years later. This article from Shepherd Press reinforces the same idea, and is worth the reminder.