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From the writings of the Rev. Billy Graham

Dear Rev. Graham: The home and family are under attack today like never before. Much of society wants to eliminate these foundational pillars – and they are making successful strides to demolish traditional beliefs. Governments and educators want to seize the minds of our children, claiming they can do a better job! Some young parents are feeling pressured and giving up their responsibility. Hasn’t God given parents the full responsibility of their children? – P.R.

Dear P.R.: God gave parents children to love and to raise, and to prepare them to become adults. From infancy until the day they finally leave home, our children are moving toward independence – and that is as it should be. If nothing intervenes, life will come full circle: The children we brought into the world will become parents themselves, and the baton will be passed to the next generation.
Our responsibility as parents, however, doesn’t stop with providing for our children’s physical needs. They may grow into healthy young men and women – but if that’s all they become, we have failed to prepare them for life. More than that, we have failed to help them become the individuals God wants them to be. We help them with life’s hurts and disappointments. We help them to build healthy relationships.
Children may become adults physically, mentally, and emotionally – but if they have no moral and spiritual foundations, they will never know lasting stability. If our children grow up with no understanding of right and wrong, no desire to live with integrity, no faith in God, their souls will be impoverished. For parents who say they will let their kids make up their own minds about life and refrain from teaching them about God or His moral standards, they are abdicating their responsibility.
Parents should love their children and let them know they’re loved. Children who experience love find it far easier to believe God loves them.
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(This column is based on the words and writings of the late Rev. Billy Graham.)