Recently while preparing our traditional Italian, Sunday lunch, I became overwhelmed with gratitude as I watched my 4 beautiful children set the table and interact with each other.
I asked The Lord: “How am I so blessed with these 4 precious humans? I don’t deserve them, Lord, they are so much more than I ever dared to dream!”
I heard Him say:
Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord. The fruit of the womb is a reward.Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them.” (Psalm 127:3-4)
Wow!!! They are like arrows in the hands of a warrior!!
Parents are compared to warriors and children to arrows! What a powerful picture!
I prayed, “Lord, teach me how and where to shoot these arrows so that they would be effective! Teach me how to set them on the right trajectory! I want to be worthy!”
God replied, “Research everything you can about it, and you will learn how.”
So that’s what I did.
First I looked up what trajectory means.
Trajectory-the path followed by a projectile flying or an object moving under the action of given forces.
The path our children will follow is determined by our actions, we are the force!
When you shoot an arrow you align the center of your weapon with the target and aim up or down depending on the distance. In this case, the “weapon” is the bow itself!
Did you get that? The accuracy and effectiveness of the arrow depends on how we hold and use the bow!
The bow represents our authority over our children. Do we misuse it and abuse it? Or do we lead in love and grace? Are we an example of forgiveness and kindness? Do we reflect Jesus?
The type of relationship we have with our children will determine how they will relate to God and His authority, how open they are to receiving instruction, how flexible and moldable they are. Do they respect us as leaders? Or do they see hypocrisy in our actions?
When shooting and aiming an arrow, there is also a very important factor to take into account, which is the “Archer’s Paradox”.
A paradox is a situation involving two things with a contradictory nature.
When the arrow is released, it begins to travel forward. Almost immediately the presence of the bow itself starts to push the arrow to the left. This is because both the arrow and the bow are solid matter, and two solid objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time.
The arrow rubs alongside the bow and out to the left. It’s a paradoxical idea because we know arrows can be fired precisely, and the deflection caused by the “Archer’s Paradox” should cause it to fire left. But because arrows are flexible, the middle of the arrow hits the shaft and it all shifts again, sort of like the body of a snake, that slithers left to right but still travels in a straight line.
The strength of the bow, the flexibility of the arrow, and the archer have to work together to create the perfect condition. Outside forces like gravity and opposing winds, will try to bring that arrow down, but as long as we use the bow in the right way and aim in the right direction, even if the arrow seems to have changed trajectory, it will still hit the mark!
The components of an arrow are extremely important to its performance.
The shaft, which can be made of different materials, it needs to have the right stiffness to match the bow. As an arrow is released, the staff bends, before straightening in flight. Incompatibility between bow and arrow will cause the arrow to fly erratically and inaccurately. The staff represents ones identity and relationship with Christ. Since we tend to compare our Heavenly Father to our earthly father, our relationship with our earthly father is extremely important. How we relate to The Lord can be sabotaged if we have a troubled relationship with our earthly father. If our relationship is compromised then we will struggle to find our identity in Christ.
Therefore a strong relationship between parents, especially fathers, and children, is essential in one’s life to find one’s purpose.
The fletching, the feathers at the end of the arrow. The fletching creates wind drag and can also cause the arrow to spin similar to a rifle bullet, providing stability and accuracy in flight. These feathers represent their giftings and callings, which may develop later in life, but if nurtured from a young age, can really set the stage for their success and set them on the right course, exploding in a powerful way once they find their identity in Christ. It’s up to parents to recognize where these strengths and giftings lie and nurture them.
The arrowhead, the tip of the arrow, the part that penetrates and hits the target.
This represents how deeply they are rooted in The Word of God. The accuracy efficacy and influence of their ministry, their work, their authority in Christ is rooted in how well they know The Word of God and all of Its wonderful truths and promises. Have they been transformed by It? Are they living by It?
The nock, the little slot at the rear end of the arrow.
It is used to adjust the arrow to the bowstring, in readiness to shoot.
The nock represents their maturity, are they ready to be launched into the world? Are they ready to face the battles? That is something that not even a parent can truly know. Sometimes it is necessary to send them out without knowing. Sometimes we are forced to let them go, but we can rest assured that The Lord Is with them.
Lastly, the main component of shooting an arrow is the warrior. A warrior is defined as a person engaged or experienced in warfare, a soldier.
Have we earned the title of a warrior? Have we battled enemy after enemy? Are we experienced in warfare? Have we been through grueling training, year after year?
Do we know what it means to face a giant with a sling and a stone?
Before we can graduate to a bow and arrow and expect to shoot and hit the target, we need to bend our knees, set our face to the floor and surrender our lives completely to Christ!!
You don’t have to be a parent to be able to influence and mentor young people, but what you do need, is a heart sold out to God! What you need is humility, what you need is a purity, what you need is faith, what you need is a life of prayer!
How can we expect to mentor the next generation if we live a life of compromise? How can they listen if we don’t practice what we preach?
The Lord says:
I have placed you in this place of power and influence so that you could empower the next generation. But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea. (Matthew 18:6) I will hold you accountable for each and every one of them!”
Parents, grandparents, leaders, mentors, we have a huge responsibility to forge the next generation of Kingdom-minded warriors! Are we worthy of this weighty mandate? Do we have what it takes? I believe that if we give our everything to Him if we let The Lord lead us if we keep trusting Him in the valley, the fire, and the storms of life if we stand up for righteousness and truth no matter the cost, we will earn our title of faithful warriors and when the time comes to aim and shoot that arrow, it might bend, it might deviate, but it will ultimately hit the mark because the one who shot it is completely and wholly trusting in the One who gave him those arrows!
I want to be worthy of those arrows!! Do you?
Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6
And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. Ephesians 6:4
And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. Deuteronomy 6:6-8
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Therisingofthesthers
Featured Image by Laura Crowe on Unsplash
