My Three Sons
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1 Kings 2:1
Take courage and be a man. Observe the requirements of the Lord
your God, and follow all His ways . . . so that you will be successful in
all you do and wherever you go (vv.2-3).
Okay, I admit the title of this devo is misleading.
I don’t have sons. I am the proud father of three
lovely girls! And by the grace of God, I strive
to be the kind of parent God wants me to be.
Now since I have raised only daughters, I’ve been
told that my parenting expertise is restricted to raising
girls. The insinuation is that I might be less “successful” if
I had sons to parent. It makes me wonder how different
it would be if I had boys instead. I wonder what manly
counsel I would give to my three sons.
David was father to many more sons than daughters
(1 Chronicles 3:1-9). Severely ill and knowing that his
death was imminent, David gave this final advice to his
son Solomon: “Take courage and be a man” (1 Kings
2:2). Typical of all fathers, David wanted his son to be
courageous and successful (v.3).
Life can be tough and traumatic, hard and full of
heartache, fear-inducing and frightening, discouraging
and disappointing and devastating. For Solomon to
be courageous and victorious over life’s trials and
tragedies, he had to remain strong in God (1 Chronicles
22:13, 28:20; 1 Corinthians 16:13; Ephesians 6:10).
To become successful, Solomon had to “observe the
requirements of the Lord . . . and follow all His ways”
(1 Kings 2:3). David’s words were intended to teach his
son how to be a godly man. For the successful person is
a godly person who knows and obeys God’s Word (Deuteronomy 5:32, 10:12;
Joshua 1:7-8; 1 Chronicles 22:11-13).
Whether I’m raising sons or daughters shouldn’t matter. For I need to give to
all my children the same timeless recipe for success: “Be strong in the Lord. Be a
godly person. Know and obey God’s Word.” That’s true success!
—K.T. Sim
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How does this world define a successful and prosperous life?
How does the Bible define that kind of life? (Deuteronomy 5:28,
Deuteronomy 10:12; Joshua 1:7; 1 Chronicles 22:11).
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What final word of advice would you give to your children? Why is it
important that we model what we teach?
