A Heritage Forever

Psalm 119:111
Your testimonies I have taken as a heritage forever,
For they are the rejoicing of my heart

The word "heritage" is a bit old-fashioned, but I think most people still understand the concept: it simply means "an object or quality passed down from previous generations, an inheritance." It also contains the idea of being a special or individual possession—no two families will have exactly the same inheritance. 

What better foundation for living life could a parent give their child than a knowledge of God's testimonies? In Philippians 3:8, Paul says that all other things he counts as loss in comparison with the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus. Unlike material inheritances, it will never be used up, or crumble to dust, for Peter tells us that the word of God lives and abides forever (1 Peter 1:23). The world can never take it from us, because He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world (1 Jn. 4:4).

I am incredibly blessed to have the Word of God as my heritage. Growing up, I was saturated with the Bible—not just Sundays and Wednesdays, but in the home as well: reading and memorizing it together as a family, and each member individually. Not only was I surrounded by God's testimonies, I also saw that they were held in the highest esteem by everyone I respected. It was the standard by which behavior was judged: when we were corrected, it was not because our actions had been inconvenient to our parents, but because they had been contrary to God's commands. With this background, it was easy and natural for me to learn to love and revere Scripture.

Many people do not grow up in a home like mine, but they can still choose to take God's testimonies as a heritage. This is an inheritance that has to be personally accepted before it is legitimate; just following the letter of the law because everyone around you does is not enough—it must be a conscious choice to embrace this most excellent knowledge and let it shape your life. Having this heritage, we must guard it—do not let people take anything away from it—nurture it, by making sure our life matches up with our beliefs, and pass it on to those who come after us.

"If we might have our desire, we would desire to keep the commands of God perfectly. To know the doctrine, to enjoy the promise, to practice the command — be this a kingdom large enough for us."

- Charles Spurgeon

Large Family Idiosyncrasy #6: Sticks and Stones

One of the things that is different about a large family is The Rules.

Every family, large or small, has their own set of Rules, and many of these rules are roughly the same across the board: no hitting, look both ways before crossing the street, don't eat things off the floor...no matter the number of children, the same rules apply. Big families, however, tend to have some quirky rules that would not be needed otherwise.

Several of the "idiosyncrasies" in this blog series will be related to our own family Rules, and this is the first one: No Common Rocks in the House. I'm not talking about this kind of rock:

—although we do have to limit the number. I'm talking about common rocks. This includes, but is not limited to:

- Gravel. 

- Rocks from the woods.

- Rocks faintly shaped like arrowheads. 

- Rocks with pretty sparkles. 

- Rocks which may look cool when submerged in water. 

- Rocks with a stripe in them.

The "reasons" advanced for their specialness are endless, but they are simply not allowed in the house. I believe that this "rule" was first added into our official codified system when Rebekah (when she was much younger) filled her entire top drawer with rocks, almost breaking her dresser. 

It has since been amended to "No Common Rocks Or Sticks in the House." Children are allowed, sometimes encouraged, to play with sticks and rocks outside in the yard, but if those sticks and stones cross the threshold of our home, they are liable to seizure, and may be thrown as far into the woods as possible (if a rock), or incinerated (if a stick). 

A love of common rocks and sticks seems to be born into children, and I have personally never known a boy who did not have a special stick, whether it was a "spear", a "sword", an "arrow", or a "gun". They will carry them everywhere if allowed, often heedless of where the ends are, presenting a danger to themselves, those around them, and any fragile items in the vicinity. For our family, the balancing point between safety and fun was to ban them from the house, but allow them outside.