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00:00:01 I think all of us have had 00:00:03 very interesting experiences with young ones, 00:00:06 and we could go on quite a while 00:00:08 speaking about them. 00:00:10 But there is a story 00:00:12 about a “child psychologist 00:00:15 “who began his practice with four theories 00:00:20 “and no children. . . . 00:00:23 “Some years later he found that he had four children 00:00:27 and no theories!” 00:00:30 He learned that there was quite a bit to do. 00:00:34 There was a lot to do to raise a child. 00:00:37 It was far more than just a few theories. 00:00:40 And this was a comment that was reported by psychologist Bruce Narramore 00:00:45 and published in the Awake! of April 8, 1981. 00:00:50 So theories about child raising come and go, 00:00:53 and the best counsel on raising a child, of course, is found in the Bible. 00:00:58 We know that, because it’s been there for thousands of years, 00:01:02 and it’s consistent. 00:01:04 It’s consistently successful. 00:01:07 There’s another interesting point 00:01:09 that there is four times as much counsel 00:01:12 given to children in the book of Proverbs 00:01:15 as given to adults. 00:01:17 That might surprise you, but that’s what I read, so I believe it. 00:01:22 Proverbs 22:6 is a familiar scripture for all of us. 00:01:27 Proverbs 22:6, and here it says: 00:01:31 “Train a boy in the way he should go; 00:01:35 even when he grows old he will not depart from it.” 00:01:41 Is that true? 00:01:43 Yes, it’s true. 00:01:45 Does it mean that in every case 00:01:47 a boy that’s well-trained by his parents won’t depart from it? 00:01:51 No. It does not mean that. 00:01:53 It’s giving a general, overall view 00:01:56 of what will take place 00:01:58 if a child is trained properly by his parents. 00:02:02 And what it is, this is an interesting brief statement 00:02:06 from The Watchtower of 2008, April 1st 00:02:10 that if a child is trained according to the Bible’s counsel, 00:02:14 the parent or parents “are creating 00:02:17 “the most favorable circumstances 00:02:19 to bring about a marvelous result.” 00:02:23 That marvelous result is 00:02:25 a faithful servant of Jehovah God. 00:02:28 And we can turn to Proverbs 23:24 00:02:31 where reference is made to that 00:02:34 —Proverbs 23:24. 00:02:36 And how many parents are so delighted with their children, 00:02:40 especially in the case of so many who are serving at Bethel! 00:02:44 There at Proverbs 23:24, it says: 00:02:47 “The father of a righteous one will surely be joyful; 00:02:52 whoever fathers a wise son will rejoice in him.” 00:02:56 And it does; it brings great pleasure to parents when that happens. 00:03:00 But there’s another side to the coin. 00:03:02 Despite the most earnest efforts of parents, 00:03:06 some children do become unfaithful. 00:03:10 Think about Solomon. 00:03:12 He wasn’t a child, but actually, 00:03:15 it’s very difficult to understand 00:03:17 how that man turned away from Jehovah in his old age, but he did. 00:03:21 And then even Jehovah had sons who proved unfaithful. 00:03:25 That’s what the June 1, 2007, Watchtower 00:03:28 showed clearly, and we’re all familiar with it 00:03:30 —the angels who turned away from their Father, their Creator. 00:03:34 And something to keep in mind 00:03:36 for parents, particularly, who have really tried hard 00:03:39 to raise their children properly, 00:03:42 we don’t want to see them beat themselves figuratively speaking, 00:03:46 on and on for years and years 00:03:48 because they feel like they’re failures. 00:03:50 They should not do that. 00:03:52 How do you account —if it seems to some parents 00:03:55 that know somehow they failed— 00:03:57 Well then, how do you account for children 00:03:59 who receive no help whatsoever from their parents 00:04:02 and they love Jehovah and they come into the truth? 00:04:06 It’s heart—heart condition. 00:04:09 So parents would be wise to focus on the future and what they can do, 00:04:14 not to look back and beat themselves 00:04:16 over problems of the past. 00:04:19 And even when children do turn aside from serving Jehovah, 00:04:23 parents who have conscientiously trained their children 00:04:27 in the way to walk, 00:04:29 they can still entertain the hope 00:04:31 that those young ones will come back some day. 00:04:34 We never give up on our kids. 00:04:37 We don’t give up on our close friends or siblings 00:04:40 who may have walked away from the truth. 00:04:42 We always hope that they’ll come back. 00:04:45 Psalm 19:7 is interesting 00:04:49 —Psalm 19:7— 00:04:53 speaking of the reminders of Jehovah. 00:04:58 There it reads: “The law of Jehovah is perfect, restoring strength.” 00:05:03 And then it says: “The reminder of Jehovah is trustworthy, 00:05:07 making the inexperienced one wise.” 00:05:10 Well, for those who leave the truth, 00:05:13 many times it’s reminders that come back to them 00:05:16 —the way it was at home, the counsel they received from their parents, 00:05:20 the loving congregation that they attended. 00:05:24 And who comes to mind when you think about the reminders coming to mind 00:05:29 after living a life of debauchery? 00:05:32 The prodigal son. 00:05:34 He was at his lowest, and then who did he remember? 00:05:38 His father —his father, who undoubtedly had shown 00:05:42 kindness and love to him. 00:05:44 So we don’t want to overlook 00:05:46 the power there is in parental training. 00:05:49 Even though they may not respond 00:05:51 —children may not respond— immediately, 00:05:54 they do many times later on. 00:05:56 And they go through experiences in life, sometimes, 00:05:59 that wake them up to the facts of life and reality. 00:06:04 The truth is there are thousands upon thousands 00:06:06 of children of Jehovah’s Witnesses 00:06:08 who are being raised in the truth and whose way “is pure and right.” 00:06:12 It really is thrilling to see young ones who are able to think. 00:06:16 They don’t just parrot what their parents tell them. 00:06:18 They’re not just memorizing things. 00:06:20 They’ve learned to have thinking ability, and they can speak about the truth. 00:06:24 They defend the truth in a very interesting way. 00:06:28 In Britain, Tim and Sam, both 11 years old and unbaptized publishers, 00:06:33 were engaging in field service with Tim’s mother. 00:06:37 The boys needed new bags to carry their Bibles and literature, 00:06:41 but money was a problem. 00:06:43 Earlier, before starting in the field service that day, 00:06:46 the mothers of the two publishers made this a subject of prayer. 00:06:51 At the last house to be visited that morning, 00:06:54 Tim spoke to the householder and read a Bible verse to her. 00:06:58 She interrupted him to ask what his religion was. 00:07:02 When Tim replied that he was one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 00:07:05 the woman scolded him 00:07:07 and said to his mother that she could not understand 00:07:10 why Jehovah’s Witnesses let their children die 00:07:12 rather than allow them to accept blood transfusions. 00:07:16 Now, that would be a difficult thing to have thrown in your face 00:07:19 for a young man there at the door with his mother. 00:07:22 Tim’s mother suggested that the woman ask the boys 00:07:26 how they felt about this. 00:07:29 She did. 00:07:30 Tim explained that he would always choose alternative treatment 00:07:34 rather than go against his Bible-trained conscience. 00:07:38 This was from this young boy himself. 00:07:41 Sam then said, the other young boy, 00:07:45 that his own sister had received alternative treatment 00:07:48 and had fared better than patients who had received blood. 00:07:54 Then the householder again turned to Tim’s mother, 00:07:56 and this time she expressed disapproval 00:07:59 of taking young children from door to door. 00:08:02 We’ve heard that many times, I’m sure. 00:08:05 Both of the boys responded to the woman on this occasion 00:08:08 that they enjoyed preaching, adding that they preferred this 00:08:12 to roaming the streets like others of their age. 00:08:16 Well, this slowed the householder down a bit. 00:08:18 She was impressed by their reply. 00:08:21 The householder asked the boys to wait a moment 00:08:23 while she went into her house. 00:08:25 What a surprise they had when she returned and presented each of them 00:08:30 with a smart, new, leather bag 00:08:32 ideal for their ministry! 00:08:35 She sold these items for a living. 00:08:37 Her changed attitude also allowed the boys to arrange for a return visit. 00:08:42 And as they were leaving, 00:08:44 the householder’s 94-year-old mother, who had been listening, 00:08:48 came to the door and asked Tim’s mother 00:08:51 to visit her at her home. 00:08:54 Truly, we are proud of our young ones. 00:08:57 And it’s a delight when you hear them 00:08:59 make comments at the meetings in their own words 00:09:03 and when you are out in the field ministry with them 00:09:06 and you see them make expressions of faith. 00:09:09 We have thousands upon thousands of good children 00:09:13 who really are showing that they’re mature and that they love Jehovah God.
00:00:01 I think all of us have had 00:00:03 very interesting experiences with young ones, 00:00:06 and we could go on quite a while 00:00:08 speaking about them. 00:00:10 But there is a story 00:00:12 about a “child psychologist 00:00:15 “who began his practice with four theories 00:00:20 “and no children. . . . 00:00:23 “Some years later he found that he had four children 00:00:27 and no theories!” 00:00:30 He learned that there was quite a bit to do. 00:00:34 There was a lot to do to raise a child. 00:00:37 It was far more than just a few theories. 00:00:40 And this was a comment that was reported by psychologist Bruce Narramore 00:00:45 and published in the Awake! of April 8, 1981. 00:00:50 So theories about child raising come and go, 00:00:53 and the best counsel on raising a child, of course, is found in the Bible. 00:00:58 We know that, because it’s been there for thousands of years, 00:01:02 and it’s consistent. 00:01:04 It’s consistently successful. 00:01:07 There’s another interesting point 00:01:09 that there is four times as much counsel 00:01:12 given to children in the book of Proverbs 00:01:15 as given to adults. 00:01:17 That might surprise you, but that’s what I read, so I believe it. 00:01:22 Proverbs 22:6 is a familiar scripture for all of us. 00:01:27 Proverbs 22:6, and here it says: 00:01:31 “Train a boy in the way he should go; 00:01:35 even when he grows old he will not depart from it.” 00:01:41 Is that true? 00:01:43 Yes, it’s true. 00:01:45 Does it mean that in every case 00:01:47 a boy that’s well-trained by his parents won’t depart from it? 00:01:51 No. It does not mean that. 00:01:53 It’s giving a general, overall view 00:01:56 of what will take place 00:01:58 if a child is trained properly by his parents. 00:02:02 And what it is, this is an interesting brief statement 00:02:06 from The Watchtower of 2008, April 1st 00:02:10 that if a child is trained according to the Bible’s counsel, 00:02:14 the parent or parents “are creating 00:02:17 “the most favorable circumstances 00:02:19 to bring about a marvelous result.” 00:02:23 That marvelous result is 00:02:25 a faithful servant of Jehovah God. 00:02:28 And we can turn to Proverbs 23:24 00:02:31 where reference is made to that 00:02:34 —Proverbs 23:24. 00:02:36 And how many parents are so delighted with their children, 00:02:40 especially in the case of so many who are serving at Bethel! 00:02:44 There at Proverbs 23:24, it says: 00:02:47 “The father of a righteous one will surely be joyful; 00:02:52 whoever fathers a wise son will rejoice in him.” 00:02:56 And it does; it brings great pleasure to parents when that happens. 00:03:00 But there’s another side to the coin. 00:03:02 Despite the most earnest efforts of parents, 00:03:06 some children do become unfaithful. 00:03:10 Think about Solomon. 00:03:12 He wasn’t a child, but actually, 00:03:15 it’s very difficult to understand 00:03:17 how that man turned away from Jehovah in his old age, but he did. 00:03:21 And then even Jehovah had sons who proved unfaithful. 00:03:25 That’s what the June 1, 2007, Watchtower 00:03:28 showed clearly, and we’re all familiar with it 00:03:30 —the angels who turned away from their Father, their Creator. 00:03:34 And something to keep in mind 00:03:36 for parents, particularly, who have really tried hard 00:03:39 to raise their children properly, 00:03:42 we don’t want to see them beat themselves figuratively speaking, 00:03:46 on and on for years and years 00:03:48 because they feel like they’re failures. 00:03:50 They should not do that. 00:03:52 How do you account —if it seems to some parents 00:03:55 that know somehow they failed— 00:03:57 Well then, how do you account for children 00:03:59 who receive no help whatsoever from their parents 00:04:02 and they love Jehovah and they come into the truth? 00:04:06 It’s heart—heart condition. 00:04:09 So parents would be wise to focus on the future and what they can do, 00:04:14 not to look back and beat themselves 00:04:16 over problems of the past. 00:04:19 And even when children do turn aside from serving Jehovah, 00:04:23 parents who have conscientiously trained their children 00:04:27 in the way to walk, 00:04:29 they can still entertain the hope 00:04:31 that those young ones will come back some day. 00:04:34 We never give up on our kids. 00:04:37 We don’t give up on our close friends or siblings 00:04:40 who may have walked away from the truth. 00:04:42 We always hope that they’ll come back. 00:04:45 Psalm 19:7 is interesting 00:04:49 —Psalm 19:7— 00:04:53 speaking of the reminders of Jehovah. 00:04:58 There it reads: “The law of Jehovah is perfect, restoring strength.” 00:05:03 And then it says: “The reminder of Jehovah is trustworthy, 00:05:07 making the inexperienced one wise.” 00:05:10 Well, for those who leave the truth, 00:05:13 many times it’s reminders that come back to them 00:05:16 —the way it was at home, the counsel they received from their parents, 00:05:20 the loving congregation that they attended. 00:05:24 And who comes to mind when you think about the reminders coming to mind 00:05:29 after living a life of debauchery? 00:05:32 The prodigal son. 00:05:34 He was at his lowest, and then who did he remember? 00:05:38 His father —his father, who undoubtedly had shown 00:05:42 kindness and love to him. 00:05:44 So we don’t want to overlook 00:05:46 the power there is in parental training. 00:05:49 Even though they may not respond 00:05:51 —children may not respond— immediately, 00:05:54 they do many times later on. 00:05:56 And they go through experiences in life, sometimes, 00:05:59 that wake them up to the facts of life and reality. 00:06:04 The truth is there are thousands upon thousands 00:06:06 of children of Jehovah’s Witnesses 00:06:08 who are being raised in the truth and whose way “is pure and right.” 00:06:12 It really is thrilling to see young ones who are able to think. 00:06:16 They don’t just parrot what their parents tell them. 00:06:18 They’re not just memorizing things. 00:06:20 They’ve learned to have thinking ability, and they can speak about the truth. 00:06:24 They defend the truth in a very interesting way. 00:06:28 In Britain, Tim and Sam, both 11 years old and unbaptized publishers, 00:06:33 were engaging in field service with Tim’s mother. 00:06:37 The boys needed new bags to carry their Bibles and literature, 00:06:41 but money was a problem. 00:06:43 Earlier, before starting in the field service that day, 00:06:46 the mothers of the two publishers made this a subject of prayer. 00:06:51 At the last house to be visited that morning, 00:06:54 Tim spoke to the householder and read a Bible verse to her. 00:06:58 She interrupted him to ask what his religion was. 00:07:02 When Tim replied that he was one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 00:07:05 the woman scolded him 00:07:07 and said to his mother that she could not understand 00:07:10 why Jehovah’s Witnesses let their children die 00:07:12 rather than allow them to accept blood transfusions. 00:07:16 Now, that would be a difficult thing to have thrown in your face 00:07:19 for a young man there at the door with his mother. 00:07:22 Tim’s mother suggested that the woman ask the boys 00:07:26 how they felt about this. 00:07:29 She did. 00:07:30 Tim explained that he would always choose alternative treatment 00:07:34 rather than go against his Bible-trained conscience. 00:07:38 This was from this young boy himself. 00:07:41 Sam then said, the other young boy, 00:07:45 that his own sister had received alternative treatment 00:07:48 and had fared better than patients who had received blood. 00:07:54 Then the householder again turned to Tim’s mother, 00:07:56 and this time she expressed disapproval 00:07:59 of taking young children from door to door. 00:08:02 We’ve heard that many times, I’m sure. 00:08:05 Both of the boys responded to the woman on this occasion 00:08:08 that they enjoyed preaching, adding that they preferred this 00:08:12 to roaming the streets like others of their age. 00:08:16 Well, this slowed the householder down a bit. 00:08:18 She was impressed by their reply. 00:08:21 The householder asked the boys to wait a moment 00:08:23 while she went into her house. 00:08:25 What a surprise they had when she returned and presented each of them 00:08:30 with a smart, new, leather bag 00:08:32 ideal for their ministry! 00:08:35 She sold these items for a living. 00:08:37 Her changed attitude also allowed the boys to arrange for a return visit. 00:08:42 And as they were leaving, 00:08:44 the householder’s 94-year-old mother, who had been listening, 00:08:48 came to the door and asked Tim’s mother 00:08:51 to visit her at her home. 00:08:54 Truly, we are proud of our young ones. 00:08:57 And it’s a delight when you hear them 00:08:59 make comments at the meetings in their own words 00:09:03 and when you are out in the field ministry with them 00:09:06 and you see them make expressions of faith. 00:09:09 We have thousands upon thousands of good children 00:09:13 who really are showing that they’re mature and that they love Jehovah God.
