Today, on Insight for Living, Wisdom from the Psalms. My days were laid out in God's book. He knows how it reads. He knows what it says.
Every moment was laid out before you, before there was a single day that had passed. How precious are your thoughts toward me? You realize how few people spend their life on this earth never once realizing that God thinks precious thoughts about them. The Psalms and Proverbs contain indispensable wisdom for moms and dads. Some of the child-rearing tips are obvious.
Others are more subtle, like the one we're addressing right now. Today, on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll continues his brand new series called Restoring Your Family's Foundation. In this program, he'll reinforce that God has designed each child with unique traits, and every day has been laid out before them. Before Chuck's opening prayer, you should know that this message was delivered one year ago, just after parents in Uvalde, Texas endured every family's ultimate nightmare. On a quiet day in May, May 24th, a number of miles south of us, a tragedy took place. As a result, many families grieve today. The loss of children, adults as well, flags fly at half-staff in honor of those who passed.
The heartbreak is unimaginable. From that day on, a chair is empty at the table. A bed in the home is now empty. A space in the life is no longer filled. A hole is in the hearts of those grieving. Let's pray for them, these who survive and need hope to go on.
It is excruciating, our Father, for us to even try to imagine the grief that sweeps over that little town in the valley. Those dear people going about their day, knowing nothing of what was going to happen, only to be made aware of this horror taking place in a classroom. Little six, seven, eight, nine, ten-year-old children gunned down. Loving, courageous teachers with children in their arms killed as well.
And even a husband shortly thereafter dying of a broken heart. Our hearts go out to these dear people. Lord God, you who made us, you who sustain us with life, I pray that you will bring back hope, strength, the ability to go on. May these families pull together. May they come before you. May they find at least a measure of hope in the ultimate resurrection that you have promised, yet future. May we hold our children closer. May we as families pull together.
May we realize that life hangs on a very thin thread. We know, our Father, that you are at work, and even in the horror and tragedy of it all, you will bring about things that otherwise would not occur. You will bring people to yourself as knees are bowed and hearts break. You will reveal yourself to many as we turn to you, your son, Jesus Christ. Bring peace like a river and hope beyond the heartache. We ask through Christ, our Savior and Lord. And everyone said, Amen. You're listening to Insight for Living.
To dig deeper into the Bible with Chuck Swindoll, be sure to download his Searching the Scriptures studies by going to insight.org slash studies. And now let's resume the message Chuck titled, Your Child Has the Bents. Every child has two major bents.
The first would be the good bents, the things that we're gifted to do, to be, things we're interested in, pursuits we want to study, develop, ideally form our career around those things. Because that's the way we are bent. And it's all given by God. We don't create it in ourselves, though we can cultivate what God has given us.
He places it there as we're going to see from Psalm 139. The other bent is the dark side of everyone. The evil bent within us. Paul writes in Romans 5-12, through one man, Adam, the first man, through one man sin entered into the world and death through sin. So death and sin passed upon all for all have sinned. Every one of us, including our parents, as good and great and godly as they may have been, including them. And they give birth to those who were like them, sinners.
And that needs to be counteracted, discovered, dealt with, and consistently and fairly counteracted through measures of discipline, confrontation and correction. Notice the Psalm, if you've got your Bible open, is titled Psalm 139. Right below the title is the name of the writer.
This is called the superscription. In this case, the writer, the composer of the Psalm is David. He begins by describing how well God knows us. It begins, according to verse 13, when we are just beyond the embryonic stage in our mother's womb. We are now a fetus being formed in the womb of the mother.
Notice how it begins. You made all the delicate inner parts of my body. And the verse continues, you knit me together. This comes from the Hebrew word that suggests an interwoven mass or thicket.
Isn't that interesting? All the delicate interwoven parts of my being, not only the various organs, but along with a veritable thicket of muscles and tendons and bones and glands and nerves and membranes and veins and arteries, all of that interwoven within me. You and you alone did that. This dawns on David and he begins the next verse, verse 14, with, I praise you. He suddenly realizes how magnificent it is that he has been put together like this. In fact, the text reads actually, I praise you because I'm wonderfully made. Your works in me are wonderful. He brings in juxtaposition the repeated word, wonderful. Wonderful doesn't have a better word to use than the handwork of God is wonderful and the resulting work of God is wonderful.
And your marvelous works, I know it well. It's who I am. It's how I've been made.
Think of what that could do for a young child when he or she has it dawn on him. You're not like any other. You're an original from God's hand. How wonderful. How wonderful God has given us these inner parts that serve in this way.
Is it any surprise that David says twice, wonderful, wonderful. Not only has God originated our vital organs, but go further. He's given each of us our set of emotions, our unique personality, our inclinations, our abilities, our interest in certain subjects. As a result, no one else is exactly like you.
There is no clone. The commandments realize that he's an original and something happened within him as he came to terms with that. He, as well as we, become free of comparison. I said this last time and I'll repeat it. A great mistake parents make is comparing one child with another. How unfair.
Why would we do that? Comparisons help no one. The one who's doing better just has his pride built up.
The one who's doing worse gets more depressed. What good is comparison? You're not meant to be like your brother or your sister. You're meant to be an original. It's remarkable knowing of the Lord's original work within us and how we're meant to be. David goes on to talk about the frame was not hidden from you when I was made in secret. The frame is a Hebrew word that means bony substance. It would refer to our skeleton. Our height is shaped in our frame.
Our bones, our frames are all put together uniquely. We're woven together. These words are translated woven together. That is from the word, get this, variegated as in a multicolored cloth. It's used in the book of Exodus for the curtain that hangs in the tabernacle that was embroidered in these beautiful colors with colorful threads.
The word rendered here variegated is used there in Exodus. The Lord was then engaged in the variegated inner workings of our being. What's so amazing about this is there are those who deny that the one in the womb is alive. God is working on a living being, preparing this fetus for birth. So when you hold your child for the first time, that soft, wonderful little screaming creature that you've got in your arms, that child is come prescribed by God.
It's not a moldable piece of clay that can be shaped or altered as you please. It's not about your way. That child comes with his or her own way. God planned it like that. And wise is the parent who realizes it.
And it doesn't stop at birth. Read on. Look at verse 16. You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in your book.
Look at that. My days were laid out in God's book. He knows how it reads.
He knows what it says. Every moment was laid out before you, before there was a single day that had passed. How precious are your thoughts toward me? You realize how few people spend their life on this earth never once realizing that God thinks precious thoughts about them? How many people feel discouraged, useless, in the way? Let me jump from the earliest years to the later years.
How many in the senior category feel in the way, useless? Not so. The reason you're still living is because God planned for you to still be living. Which means he has an arrangement of things for you to this day.
In fact, those thoughts are so priceless and numberless, he calls them precious. So every child needs to know at least four things. First, the Lord made them like none other. Second, the Lord loves them and cares about them throughout their lives. Third, they are important, gifted, competent in specific areas and therefore they have a future. As you help them discover what those areas are. And fourth, we parents and grandparents are committed to the cultivation of those strengths and areas of giftedness.
Let me get very, very personal here. In our family we have two children. I'm sorry, it's easy to forget, isn't it? We have four children.
What a stupid mistake. We have four children. They've only been with us 50 years or more so I should remember that. And we have 10 grandchildren. All four children are different. Two girls, two ladies, two men. Boys on each end and the girls in the middle. Different as they can be. They're all Swindalls but they're all unique.
Made by God. Different temperaments, different interests, different levels of intelligence, different emotional makeups, different drives in life. And then we have 10 grandchildren.
From those four, by the grace of God, enjoy now the birth of 10 grandchildren. One of our grandchildren is an interesting young lady. She has been from her earliest years interested in creatures. When she was tiny and crawled along the floor, those little creatures that crawled along near her, she found delight in messing around with them as her mother tried to get the bugs away. Oh, this is my pet. And she's messing around with it. As she grows a little older, animals become her delight. I once said to Ashley, Ashley, you know, there are people.
She said, Bubba, I don't really like people. I like animals. Well, I know. And I know you want to be a vet, but you need to realize, last time I checked, no animal ever brought a credit card or no animal ever wrote a check. So with every animal comes a people.
So it might be good to keep cultivating both. She kept cultivating an interest in animals, the animal world. Wines up going to A&M, Texas A&M.
There you go. See, she's like one of those. And realize the ultimate for her is the veterinary school of medicine, prestigious school, difficult to get into. We assured her, you can make it. You've got an interest in it.
You will love that. You will pursue. And she began to pursue it. And she was accepted that great. And we were all thrilled for her because this is her interest. Her brother isn't interested in that.
The other brother isn't interested in that world. She is. It's her future. It's her life. And just a few days ago, we attended the graduation at the commencement where she gets her doctorate. And now she expects us to call her doctor. No, no, she doesn't. No, no. It's not true.
But we've had more fun. While she was in school, she even was a part of a team of people that went to South Africa and worked with huge animals. Scared her grandmother to death. Nana said to her, won't they step all over you? She says, Nana, they don't do that. When you take care of them, they will love you. And Cynthia goes, but they can still hurt you because they're so big.
They're not going to hurt me. We had a great time. We went on a granddaddy, granddaughter date. Bear with me.
I'll be through with this part in about 30 minutes. We went on a granddad, granddaughter date. I don't know if she'll even remember this, but there we sat. We finished a nice meal and I said, well, shall we take in a movie together?
There were several good ones on. She said, oh no. She said, really, I'd much rather you take me to a pet store.
Of course, of course. And so we go to the local large pet store and I'm thinking we're just going to go look at a few things. She talks to a few animals and then leaves.
But that's not true. We're there for an hour and a half. And she is, if she could have gotten into the cage with them, she would have, but she got her hand in virtually every cage.
Even one to get in with the snakes and the proprietor goes, no, no, you're not allowed to get into the snake's cage. And there we were. And she says to me, come over here.
I say, I'm over in the corner with my hands behind my back watching all this happen. She is a natural. Did we make her like that? We did not. That isn't necessarily our interest. Oh, we have pets. But, you know, her interest is much deeper than that, much broader. Why? Because that's the way she has been made. It's her way.
Your child may not be that obvious at first as hers was, but a child is known by what he does. Good things, different things, interesting things. And you have been given a set of eyes and a set of ears. Watch. Listen.
I never knew that growing up. Please don't feel sorry for me. Things turned out pretty well for me. And I'm grateful. But I wasn't cultivated by a mom and dad. I didn't know what my strengths were. My dad was busy working and my mother was busy with little kids.
Living for the day, we'd all be out of the house. And mothers understand that. So I kind of grew myself up until I along the way met people who were very interested in me.
I don't say that out of any sense of conceit. I was overwhelmed that they were even interested. Now, as your child is growing up, they long to be known. And you're the best source to help them know and to help them cultivate who they are.
You got the picture. It takes time. It takes effort. Ultimately, it will cost.
If they go into the school of their choice and they're accepted, it will be expensive. It's the role of the parent to help a child understand how they're put together and then to stand with them and to applaud their every move in that direction. This is Insight for Living. Chuck Swindoll is our Bible teacher. Today, he's talking about the unique bent that God has installed in every single member of your family. There's much more teaching ahead, so please keep listening to this series called Restoring Your Family's Foundation. Chuck wrote a book on marriage that naturally complements this study. And if you're looking to cultivate a stronger bond in your relationship, I'd highly recommend it. His book is called Marriage from Surviving to Thriving. Whether for yourself or for a young couple just getting started, we believe this practical book will fireproof any marriage.
It's practical, it's fun to read, and most important, it's founded on biblical truth. To purchase Chuck Swindoll's book, Marriage from Surviving to Thriving, go to insight.org slash offer, or call us. If you're listening in the United States, call 800-772-8888. And then we'd like to say thank you for your generous support of Insight for Living. It's possible you've been listening to Chuck's teaching for a long time. Well, perhaps your gift today will do for someone else what his teaching has done for you. You can be the one who invests in young families through this daily Bible teaching program. So as God leads you to give, please follow his prompting. You can give a donation today by calling us. If you're listening in the United States, call 800-772-8888. You can also give online at insight.org slash donate. And then did you realize you're invited to participate in an online worship service this Sunday morning?
That's right. Thousands around the world are taking advantage of this opportunity to enter the worship service where Chuck serves as the senior pastor. To watch the service at a time that suits your schedule, just go to insight.org slash Sundays. New ships leave the harbor for Alaska all the time, but there's only one that's hosted by Insight for Living Ministries. You're invited to travel with Chuck Swindoll this summer. Every moment of your vacation is thoughtfully prepared and protected so that you can enjoy the perfect balance of rest, adventure, relaxation, sightseeing, and just plain fun. All in the company of those who share your respect for God's word and God's creation.
Yeah, I'll put it this way. God had a very good day when he created Alaska. I was awestruck by the majestic mountains, the wildlife, the quaint little seaports. All my life, I've wanted to see a glacier.
When I stepped out on the deck of our ship and witnessed the massive wall of ice, wow, it was truly breathtaking. Escape with Insight for Living Ministries to the Great Frontier, July 1st through July 8th, 2023. Call 1-888-447-0444. That's 1-888-447-0444. Or learn more at insight.org slash events. The tour to Alaska is paid for and made possible by only those who choose to attend. I'm Bill Meyer. Chuck continues his brand new series, Restoring Your Family's Foundation, next time on Insight for Living. The preceding message, Your Child Has the Bands, was copyrighted in 2022 and 2023, and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2023 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.
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