Training Senses
Danish artist Lorenz Frølich, who lived from 1835 to 1903, had an international career as an illustrator. One of his projects was a popular series of books for children about the adventures of a little girl called Mademoiselle Lili. The stories were based on Frølich’s daughter Edma.
While in London in 1870, Frølich used pen and black and brown inks to create this illustration called “Mother Watching Over Two Young Children Playing.” It was an illustration in a book by Eliza Tabor called When I Was a Little Girl: Stories for Children.
Mother Watching Over Two Young Children Playing
by Lorenz Frølich
Courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art,
Gift of Lincoln Kirstein, 1966
Every wise mother watches over her little children and her big children, too. As she does that, it is imperative that she does what Hebrews 5 calls training their senses. Thinking of that reminds me of the Sunday School song I quote from time to time in these blog posts. The message is so powerful that it is worth repeating.
Be careful little eyes what you see.
Be careful little eyes what you see.
The Father up above is looking down in love,
So be careful little eyes what you see.
Be careful little ears what you hear.
Be careful little ears what you hear.
The Father up above is looking down in love,
So be careful little ears what you hear.
Be careful little hands what you do.
Be careful little hands what you do.
The Father up above is looking down in love,
So be careful little hands what you do.
Be careful little feet where you go.
Be careful little feet where you go.
The Father up above is looking down in love,
So be careful little feet where you go.
Be careful little tongues what you say.
Be careful little tongues what you say.
The Father up above is looking down in love,
So be careful little tongues what you say.
For a while mamas are closely involved with what their children see, hear, and do; where they go; and what they say. However, while they are doing that, the wise mama is training her children’s senses so that they know how to make good choices for themselves. Our goal is godly, mature Christians who “because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.” We must also teach our children not to believe the world’s lie that good and evil don’t really exist.
For though by this time you ought to be teachers,
you have need again for someone to teach you
the elementary principles of the oracles of God,
and you have come to need milk and not solid food.
For everyone who partakes only of milk
is not accustomed to the word of righteousness,
for he is an infant.
But solid food is for the mature,
who because of practice have their senses trained
to discern good and evil.
Hebrews 5:14