Day One Hundred Thirty “Chatterbox”
My, oh my, what a little chatterbox! My precious grandson can certainly fill a void with an abundance of conversation…in plain English, he talks A WHOLE BUNCH! I chuckle when I hear him in the backseat of my daughter’s car, jumping from subject to subject in an endless onslaught of verbiage, regardless of any response from his listeners. He has so much to say, from the break of dawn until he finally succumbs to slumber when the day is done. Only then can my daughter rest her weary ears and wallow in the peace and quiet.
Did you know that there is a portion of Scripture that actually encourages us to be chatterboxes, to talk constantly, to rant on endlessly? And strangely enough, that conversation revolves around our interaction with our children. This portion of the Scripture is so vitally important to the Hebrews that pious Jews still recite this particular passage twice daily. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 is the celebrated Hebrew Shema, meaning listen. The passage begins with a mandate to love God “…with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” God needs to be first, anything that cools our desire to love and serve the Creator of the universe needs to be purged. Then we need to keep all “these words…in thine heart.” God’s Word must be firmly anchored in our mind and soul before those precious truths can be impressed upon our children’s hearts. But then we need to “teach them diligently” to our children; we need to be chatterboxes.
We are instructed to speak of the things of God when we sit down, when we walk through our day, when we lie down, and when we get up. All day! We need to learn to incorporate His truth throughout all those mundane moments of life: a shopping trip becomes a lesson on honesty; a wait in a checkout line develops into instruction in patience; a restaurant trip is transformed into a missionary endeavor as we leave a gospel tract for the server; a boring car drive fades into a singing praise-a-thon; a sporting event opens the door to an object lesson on equity, justice, and sportsmanship; a good-behavior day merges into an example of pleasing God; a favorite movie ends in a lesson on morals. Attempt to seize any opportunity in the course of the day to shift the focus toward Christ, to instruct from His Word.
The world of media and entertainment is battling for your child’s attention and focus. Don’t allow a depraved culture to capture your child mind. You can’t fully insulate them, but you can keep the conversation focused on higher ground, making Christ and His Word an essential part of everyday life and conversation. Be a chatterbox for Him, diligently instructing your precious children in His ways!
Deuteronomy 6:7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
Lord, as parents help us to follow the admonition given to Your people so long ago. Help us to be diligent teachers of Your ways.
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