I have a 13 year-old daughter who (on occasion) resists me like crazy about going to church. Over the years I have used different tactics to deal with this. When she was little I just said, "Sorry, going to church is what we do on Sundays and you can't stay home alone." As she got older I have tried other things like bribery, consequences, guilt and shame. You know, all those things your parents did to you that you swore you were never going to do to your own children. Sometimes I've said, "Well, you are old enough to make your own choices. Just make sure it's okay with God first and I will support whatever He says." That's a risky one if my underlying motive is to guilt her into going. But, if I let go of the outcome and trust her to make good decisions (eventually), that one can be pretty healthy. Last week she said one of her favorite comebacks, "Don't you believe in freedom of religion? You can't make me go to church! We are free in this country." My response was, "Freedom is never about being able to do what you want without suffering any consequences for it. If you make bad choices, there will be consequences for them, and I can't prevent that no matter how much I want to. I know that the best chance you have for happiness is by learning and living the gospel of Jesus Christ. Anything else will leave you unsatisfied at best and possibly miserable." That was the end of that discussion. Something I said must have sank in because she had an attitude change. She went to church on her own accord and seemed to enjoy being there. Today I was reading in Romans and I found apostolic support for what I said. I love it when that happens! Here it is.Romans 6:20-23
20 ¶ For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness.
21 What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death.
22 But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.
23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Just a little before this in verse 16 it says
| 16 | Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? |
So to me this is saying that the choice isn't really whether we are going to be our own master or let someone else rule over us. That isn't even in the list of options from anything I have read. The choice is really whether we are going to serve Christ or serve the devil. That's it. Interesting.
