Next year’s model

This year, Lamborghini released their newest supercar model, the Aventador. Able to blast from 0-60 miles per hour in just 2.9 seconds, this beast has actually scared some reviewers by it’s raw power. The engine boasts 690 brake horsepower and 510 pounds of torque. For comparison, my Chevrolet Colorado (a non-man small truck) turns in a paltry 175 brake horsepower and 185 pounds of torque. I’ve heard before that horsepower is how fast you hit the wall, and torque is how far you go through it.

I’m sure you’re thinking “what’s the point of all this?” No, it’s not so I can include a picture of a car that costs multiple times over what I would consider paying for a car (nearly $400,000). Putting up that picture is a bonus. The Aventador is brand new, designed new from the ground up. However, if you compare it to the previous top of the line model from Lamborghini, the Murcielago  the untrained eye can’t really spot the differences. There is a similarity to them because they are descendants of the same design team, supercars created by the same company.

Our children mimic the behavior that we model to them. I notice little things that I do which come directly from my father, both good and bad. In the next moment I see my son perform those same actions. As parents, we have to know that our kids watch us every moment they are around us. They see the things that we think we are hiding from them.

Now, before we become obsessed with making sure that our kids only see the best things from us, there is a question that I want us to ask ourselves. I ask this of myself quite often. Am I more interested in modeling right behavior or in modeling Jesus? Do I worry more about my kids visibly doing the right thing or them internally knowing the right thing?

When we model behavior to our children we are feeding that behavior into their lives. We are showing them what we really approve or disapprove of by what we do with our lives. Mull that over for a minute. When we go to church on Sunday, do we grudgingly drag ourselves out the door or do we show up with expectancy, knowing that God will accomplish great things through the gathering of His people?

As parents we have to take on the responsibility of discipling our children. They must know that we place importance on their knowledge of the Word of God and that we pray for them each day. It can’t just be lip service to them, it has to be lived out in front of them. Going to church once a week is not enough. Your children won’t learn the Bible from an hour at children’s church. They learn it on your knee or at your feet, listening to how important the Bible is to you.

I’m not perfect at this, not by a long shot. This convicts me quite a bit. I have great plans to sit down with the kids each night and teach them something, but it doesn’t always happen. However, sometimes the best lessons are when we just talk about the day and they ask questions. It isn’t always Bible reading or lessons, it is sometimes showing them how the Bible applies to situations in their life and in ours.

Your children are next year’s model. They are being built brand new from the ground up, but they are influenced by what comes before. Make sure that the influence they have from you shines from the influence that your Heavenly Father has in your life.