“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and discipline. Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction, and don’t reject your mother’s teaching….” (Proverbs 1:7–8)
Mothers, if you were only assembled to teach geography, it might not injure them eternally if you were to tell the children that the North Pole was close to the Equator; or if you were to say that the extremity of South America was hard by the coast of Europe; or if you assured them that England was in the middle of Africa. But you are not teaching geography, or astronomy, nor are you training the children for business life in this world; but you are, to the best of your ability, teaching them for God. You say to them, “Children, you come here to be taught the Word of God; you come here if it is possible, that we may be the means of the salvation of your souls.”
Be careful of what you are after when you pretend to be teaching them for God. Wound the child’s hand if you will; but, for God’s sake, do not wound his heart. Say what you like about temporal things; but, I beseech you, in spiritual matters, take care how you lead him. Be careful that it is the truth that you inculcate and only that. With such a responsibility, how solemn your work becomes! He who is doing a work for himself, may do it as he likes; but he who is laboring for another, must take care to please his master; he who is employed by a monarch must beware how he performs his duty; but he who labors for God must tremble lest he does his work poorly. Remember that you are laboring for God.
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