An Immovable Spirit, Mind, and Heart

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In yesterday’s post, I talked about my prayer that our generations be immovable. In other words, I pray that none of them will move away from God and His will.

We would all like to be able to teach our children a lesson one time and have those lessons stick for the rest of their lives. Learning is much more complicated than that.

Training our children to be immovable involves more than telling them to be immovable. We can’t help them be immovable by simply teaching them a lot of rules and expecting them to obey them like a soldier obeying his commander.

At the heart of an immovable life is an immovable spirit, an immovable heart, and an immovable mind. The wise mama asks God to do His wonderful work in her children while she trains each child’s spirit, mind, and heart.

Again I had limited options for illustrating today’s post. A praying mother and teaching our children to pray are, of course, two of our best tools for rearing immovable children.

The Child’s Prayer, from Illustrated London News, February 1, 1862. Engraved by William Luson Thomas. Original artist Henry Le Jeune. Courtesy Metropolitan Museum of Art, Gift of Donato Esposito, 2013.

As we noted yesterday, the 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians ends with this command and encouragement.

Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable,
always abounding in the work of the Lord,
knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.
1 Corinthians 15:58

In this context, steadfast and immovable are almost synonyms.

A steadfast and immovable person has a steadfast spirit.

We and our children can request that God give us a steadfast spirit. After the prophet Nathan confronted King David about his sin with Bathsheba and his sin against her husband, David prayed:

Create in me a clean heart, O God,
And renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Psalm 51:10

A steadfast and immovable person has a steadfast mind.

The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace,
Because he trusts in You.
Trust in the Lord forever,
For in God the Lord, we have an everlasting Rock.
Isaiah 26:3-4

A steadfast and immovable person has a steadfast heart.

Psalm 112 describes the blessed life and legacy of someone who fears the Lord.

Praise the Lord!
How blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
Who greatly delights in His commandments.
His descendants will be mighty on earth;
The generation of the upright will be blessed . . . 

He will not fear evil tidings;
His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.
Psalm 112:1-2, 7

Our great example of steadfastness is our Lord Jesus Himself.

May the Lord direct your hearts
into the love of God
and into the steadfastness of Christ.
2 Thessalonians 3:5

 

 

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