Don't shirk your responsibility

A patient in a Georgia hospital once knocked over a cup of water onto the floor next to his bed. Fearing he would slip on the spill, he called the nurse's aide to clean up the mess. What he didn't realize is that hospital policy stated that if a spill was small, the nurse's aide had the job of cleaning it up. However, if the spill was large, hospital housekeeping would need to take care of the problem. Upon arriving at the patient's bed, the nurse's aide determined that the spill was too large for her to clean and called housekeeping. When someone from housekeeping arrived, they deemed the mess too small for them to clean. A large debate ensued between housekeeping and the nurse's aide over the size of the mess. Exasperated, the patient grabbed a pitcher of water on his night stand, poured it on the floor, and asked, "Is that puddle big enough for you two to figure this out?"

The two hospital workers were so busy debating the details of their duties that they forgot their main purpose for work-to meet the needs of the patient. Did it matter who cleaned up the mess? Would either one have gotten more or less pay for their duties? Not at all. Yet both shirked their responsibility to the patient by focusing on a petty discussion.

We as parents have a great responsibility toward their children and too many are shirking that responsibility.  We have the responsibility of training our children, being the right kind of example by attending church, working diligently at our jobs, etc.  Sometimes we are so focused on our jobs at work, that we forget that our most important job of raising our children is lacking.  Many times when parents send their children to school, they turn the responsibility over to the schools to raise their children.  It is not the school's job to raise our children, it is ours.  Many times children are dropped off at malls, parks and theaters and parents do this to get a "break" from their responsibility.  There is no such things as a break from the responsibility of our children as long as they are our children!  Our children are OUR responsibility and our responsibility alone. 

Let's determine to stop expecting the government, schools and places of recreation to raise our children.  We need to take a stand and own up to the responsibility of raising our children.  If we raise our children up in the fear and admonition of the Lord, God promises to bless us for it.  No, it is not easy, I know that all too well, but it is something that has to be done no matter how hard it may become. 

Our children are depending on us and so is God.  Our children are our future.... how is your future looking?