But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 2 Timothy 3:14-15

A nasty earache was the cause which had brought mom and daughter to the doctor.

The doctor looked in the girl's nose, and with a smooth medical banter asked, "Who's in there? Bugs Bunny?" Not feeling the best, the little girl answered with a simple, "No."

The doctor looked in the child's mouth and inquired, "Who's in there? SpongeBob?" Again, he got a concise and cool, "No."

When he looked into her ears, he posed, "And who's in here? Do I see Mickey Mouse?"

You know her answer.

Later he put his stethoscope over her heart and asked, "I know who's in here. It's Barney." The youngster said, "No, Barney is on my jacket. Jesus is in my heart."

Where did that little girl get that information? How did she know Jesus is in her heart?

The answer is a simple one. Long before that girl could walk, before she could talk, long before her first day of Sunday school, her mother had taught her about the love of Jesus.

This special weekend it should be every Christian's prayer that every child should be able to say and believe the same thing: "Jesus is in my heart." It is, after all, the single, most-important lesson a parent can ever convey to the little ones the Lord has placed into their charge.

Sadly, there are many homes which educate their children in fine manners, good hygiene, and how to look both ways before they cross the street, but believe no influence should be given toward guiding a child's spiritual development.

That is a tragic decision.

Spiritually, it is the equivalent of not telling your children that the bottle of bleach is a poison, and it can kill them. No, it's worse. The bleach can only kill temporarily. A child that is never taught about Jesus is on a path that will lead to eternal death, and not eternal life.

Today is a day for every person to give thanks for their mothers, but it is even more a chance for Christians to give thanks for those special women, genetically related or not, who did their best to make sure Jesus was in their hearts.

And, as already has been said, it is a day for us to intercede on behalf of those children who have no such mom. May God grant a parent be turned so a child may know the Redeemer who has given them spiritual life.

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, today I give thanks for those special ladies who did their best to let me know Jesus was my Savior. But I also pray for those children who have no such influence, no such spiritual guide in their lives. May both mother and father be brought to a realization that without their children knowing the Savior, their job of parenting is incomplete. In the Savior's Name I ask it. Amen.

In Christ I remain His servant and yours,

Today's Bible Readings: 2 Samuel 10-12    John 3:1-15

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