A Common Desire

You and your parents (usually) want the same things for your life: health, prosperity, and success. The problem is, you sometimes disagree over how to achieve these. If I were speaking to your parents I would have some important instructions for them from God’s word as to how to go about this. However, I am talking with you today and so I will speak to your obligations. You are accountable to God and He has given you parents. Your parent are sinners, they do not possess all wisdom, and they are learning as well. As my father use to say to me, “You have never been fourteen and I have never been the father of a fourteen-year-old.” But you see, God knew that when He put you together as parent and child.

Your obligation is to figure out how to honor God by honoring your parents. You are nearing the finish line where you will be transitioning to have your own covenant household, so don’t bolt from God’s calling now. Ecclesiastes speaks of following your desires, but it does so with a warning:

Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; walk in the ways of your heart, and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all these God will bring you into judgment. ¹⁰ Therefore remove sorrow from your heart, and put away evil from your flesh, for childhood and youth are vanity.” ―Ecclesiastes 11:9-10

“Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” ―1 Timothy 4:11

“The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: ² To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding, ³ to receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, judgment, and equity; ⁴ to give prudence to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion—⁵ a wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel, ⁶ to understand a proverb and an enigma, the words of the wise and their riddles. ⁷ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” ―Proverbs 1:1-7