Raising Wise Children

13 His mercy and grace, he or she chooses the path of foolishness. At root, this choice is a refusal to acknowledge the wonderful loving kindness of God. The rejection of this knowledge is the despising of wisdom and discipline. This is ultimate folly, the path of the fool. As you read through Proverbs, this contrasting path is clearly marked out so that even the simple can see it, and the young can make wise choices. The fear of the Lord is what gives our children a world and life view that marks the difference between someone who looks at life as if there is no creator and sustainer God and someone who does. It marks out the most essential difference between the fool of Psalm 14:1, who says in his heart, “There is no God,” and the wise child of the Book of Proverbs. What does it mean to fear the Lord? The concept of fearing the Lord was not new with Proverbs. Moses made the same assertion long before Solomon. “Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you? This: to fear the Lord your God, to walk only in his ways, to love him and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and soul”