Today’s blog post is from Rev. Amy Cornell, Compass Rose Academy’s campus pastor.

Proverbs 22:6 (NKJV): “Train up a child in the way he should go, And when he is old he will not depart from it.”

In the past month, I’ve talked with numerous frustrated parents of teenagers.

Our conversations go something like this:

“Amy, you have got to pray for my son/daughter.  I am at my wit’s end.  I’ve taken them to church, prayed, done everything, and they still are not living for the Lord.”

To this, I say “YET.  They are not living for the Lord YET.”

The Proverbs say that we are to train up a child in the way they should go, and when they are old, they will not depart from it.  Nowhere does it say that when young, they won’t have hard times and stray from the truth.

I often think about some of our finest Biblical examples whose parents must have felt bewildered when they were teenagers.  Mary got pregnant out of wedlock. Jacob stole everything from his brother.  Joseph was arrogant and was not willing to work like his brothers.  Even Jesus ran away from his parents!

Our advantage in these examples is that we know the end of the story:  how they were used by God for mighty and awesome things.

Are you at your wit’s end with your child?  Take heart. Stay in faith. Those seeds of hope and truth you are planting may seem dormant, but they are still there, taking root.  At the right time, God will cause those seeds to spring forth. Keep praying.  Keep believing.  The story is not over!

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