A Heart Problem

As my wife and I sat in the D.M.V. awaiting our son to take his driver’s permit, another young man and his mother entered the building. The mother appeared to be in her late thirty’s to early 40's, the son was fifteen. I’m not here to pass judgment on anyone, just stating facts; the young man was white, wore a baseball cap with a straight bill, tilted slightly sideways on his head. Both of his arms were marked with some type of tattoos, whether they were real or fake, I could not tell. He wore a pair of shorts and a long jersey, as well as a gold necklace and bracelet. His appearance was similar to what you would imagine a thug rapper from a video channel to be.

The mother and son sat down in the seats immediately in front of me and my wife. I could tell within 5 minutes that the mother was scared to death of her son. He was not scary looking at all. In fact, he was quite the opposite; pudgy build, pale skin, red hair, the type of kid you suspect would get bullied at school because of his appearance. Then he opened his mouth…

First, let me say that I was raised to have respect for my mother and all women. I was also taught to never use foul language, especially around a woman. You could tell from the young man’s vocabulary that most of what he said was what he learned by watching television and music videos. His verbal onslaught was embarrassing and very disrespectful. I leaned over to my wife and said “somebody needs a knot jerked in their tail.” That is a common expression that is said around my neck of the woods and is meant for anyone that misbehaves in a disrespectful manner.

After we left the D.M.V. and all day afterwards, I kept thinking about the disrespectful young man. I had let my anger toward his disgusting demeanor get the best of me. I should have shared Christ with the young man instead of allowing the situation to get the better of me. I prayed for him and his mother. One thought that keeps going through my mind is a verse from Matthew 15:18: “But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.” And, that is the young man’s issue... he has a heart problem.

Where did his heart problem begin? No doubt it began when he was just a child. Proverbs 22:6 says: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” I don’t blame the young man as much as I blame his parents. The young man’s mother just sat there, not rebuking her son for his foul mouth language or his disrespectful behavior. No doubt he had never been disciplined. The Bible teaches that we are to discipline our children: Proverbs 22:15 say: “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.” I can say without a shadow of a doubt that my parents were “Proverb Parents” because they exercised Proverbs 23:13-14 on my backside numerous times: “13 Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die. 14 Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.” I’m proud to say that just as the Bible declares, that the discipline which was administered unto me as a child did not kill me, it only made me a better person. It is God’s plan that we discipline, instruct, and raise our children in a righteous atmosphere. Proverbs 10:11 says: “The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.”

In light of the recent tragedies of the school shooting in Sandy Hook, I think it is safe to say that some serious soul searching needs to be done by parents. Many people want to blame it on guns, but the gun is not where the problem lies. The problem lies within the heart of the person holding the gun. Yes, my friend, heart problems are the cause of all of the tragedy going on in the world today. Young people today are not receiving what they need to receive any more. 

Below is a list of things you can do to try and make sure your children do not grow up with a heart problem:

1. Discipline them (Proverbs 22:6, 22:15, 23:13-14)
2. Instruct them (Deuteronomy 6:1-9, 11:18-23)
3. Bring them to Sunday school and Church (Mark 10:14, Isaiah 54:13, Psalm 122:1, Hebrews 10:25)

If you are looking for a good church to raise your family in, why not come and visit us at Highland Baptist? For information just go to our church website: www.hbcknox.org