My Beloved Son

Scripture:

Matthew 3:17 "And a voice from heaven said, 'This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy'".

Observation:

As John the Baptist was baptizing Jesus, the heavens opened, the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove, and God the Father spoke.  All three members of the trinity are seen in this beautiful passage.  This is just before Jesus is going to start His public ministry and His Father speaks word of encouragement to Him.  It was also just before He would go through the wilderness temptation.  God spoke publicly concerning His Son.  God the Father sets a great example of how we should treat our children.

Application:

Just as God the Father prepared Jesus through speaking these powerful words, we must speak words of encouragement to our children.  To instill confidence in our children, we must let them know they are dearly loved, and that they bring us great joy.  It is easy to tell our kids everything they are doing wrong, but for them to face the temptation of the enemy and be prepared for a successful life, they must know we love them, support them, believe in them, and we are proud of them.  We must speak over our children, or someone else will.

Prayer:

Father, help me to follow Your example.  As You spoke over Your Son Jesus, let me speak over my two sons.  Let them feel my love and support so they can handle the temptations that will come their way.  Teach me to follow You closer, so they can see an example of a godly man through my life.  My kids do bring me great joy, help me to speak out what is in my heart to them and give them the confidence they need for life.