“He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect. (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?).” - Apostle Paul, 1 Tim. 4:4-5

Hi, and welcome to this edition of the New Day Podcast, as we continue to explore the secrets of true leadership, from Paul's words in 1 Timothy 3.

In verse 4 and 5, he writes, "He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect. (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?). There's a lot here, so let's break it down a little.

1. He must manage his own family well.

2. His children obey him.

3. He is worthy of full respect.

I'm thinking of Charlie Montoyo, the former field manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, who was replaced season when the Jays went into a slump. I have a few Blue Jays feeds on my Facebook page, so I saw lots of comments about what a lousy manager Charlie was -  too chill, too friendly with his players, doesn't know how to handle his starting pitchers or his relievers - all while the Jays were very competitive.

I like to think of a good manager as doing the best you can with the resources you have in the time you have. You can manage your money, your time, your energy. You can manage a business or a baseball team or a church. Managing well means stewarding well. 1 Peter 4:10 says "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms."

But what about managing a family?

One of the things that is interesting in this passage is the great difference between our culture today, and the one in which Paul lived. At that time, children were largely viewed as an inconvenience - they got in the way. They were liabilities, not assets, when they were young. All they did was drain family resources until they were able to be productive by working in the fields, or in the family business, and eventually care for mom and dad in their old age. When they were little, they had little value, and were often considered a nuisance.

We live in a strange world - where everyone has magical children, with their every move being video recorded, and every accomplishment celebrated to the max. People (mostly) seem to take parenting as a privilege and a responsibility. Most families have two children, or three at the most, allowing them to focus all their attention on them.

On the other hand, abortion rates have never been higher. Even as birth control is more readily available than ever, unplanned or unwanted pregnancies keep multiplying, so that abortion is seen by many as just another means of birth control. The baby is a fetus, and as disposable as a used Kleenex, in case its arrival should prove to be an inconvenience for the mother. Often, the father is completely absent. "My body, my choice" is the rallying cry.

This article recently got my attention:

More than 500 athletes and groups signed a friend-of-the-court brief to the Supreme Court justices, including 26 Olympians, 73 professional athletes and various athlete associations. They argued that abortion rights have helped the growth of women's sports and expressed concern that future athletes would suffer without those protections.

Without the right to terminate a pregnancy, "the physical tolls of forced pregnancy and childbirth would undermine athletes' ability to actualize their full human potential," the brief stated.

"As women athletes and people in sports, we must have the power to make important decisions about our own bodies and exert control over our reproductive lives," (Megan) Rapinoe, a two-time World Cup winner and an Olympic gold medalist, said in a statement, calling legislation curbing abortion rights "infuriating and un-American."

Reuters, Sept 21, 2021

In other words, women's sports is more important that the life of children.

When we only had one child, Elsie became quite sick one day, and I ended up taking her to the ER at Kingston General Hospital. Much to our surprise, we learned that she was pregnant, and that she was losing the baby. When we get to heaven, I expect we will meet that little one for the first time, who was knit together in Elsie's womb, but who was never able to live life in our family. Son or daughter, we do not know, but one day, we will be able to experience eternity together.

Do you remember this story about Jesus?

Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them.

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there. (Matthew 19:13-15)

Just one more way Jesus was turning the world on its head! The church - the body of Christ - was reinventing the way people would be thinking about children, spouses, and family. It didn't happen overnight, and in fact, it's still in progress, but the more we can live out the principles of scripture, the better life will be for so many people!