Restore The Ancient Paths
"Those from among you will rebuild the ancient ruins; You will raise up the age-old foundations; And you will be called the repairer of the breach, The restorer of the streets in which to dwell"
Isaiah 58:12
"For My people have forgotten Me and they have stumbled from their ways, from the ancient paths to walk in bypaths, not on a highway,"
Jeremiah 18:15
Thus says the LORD, "Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, Where the good way is, and walk in it; And you will find rest for your souls. But they said, 'We will not walk {in it.}' "
Jeremiah 6:16
"And they will rebuild the ancient ruins, they will raise up the former devastations and they will repair the ruined cities, the desolation of former generations."
Isaiah 61:4
I love these verses. They have become my vision for parenting and ministry. At the time they were written, they were prophecies – promises to Israel that God would bring about its "literal and spiritual restoration." (Jameison-Faussett-Brown Commentary). I am not a huge fan of allegorizing scripture (looking at it in a symbolic way). However, if the original intent and meaning of the passage are kept intact, I have no problem pulling symbolic truths from it – provided that those truths can be supported from other passages of scripture. When I came across these verses several years ago, I felt that God used them to remind me of something really important. Namely, that He is using what I am attempting to do as a mom – raising a generation of children who love and serve God – to help restore ancient paths and rebuild age-old foundations.
Ever since my husband and I began our parenting journey, we have had a burden that our children would grow up to love and serve God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength (Deut.6:4-9). Above all else, this has been our vision for them. In a society whose foundations have been ravaged by the effects of sin, and whose paths become dead-ends, our hope and prayer for our children is that they will choose the right path.-- God’s path – for their lives. Our heart’s desire for them has always been that they will live lives built on the foundations of God’s word and place their trust in Christ, the chief cornerstone (Eph 2:20). We have prayed that they would "see and ask for the the ancient path" (Jer.6:16) which is Christ – the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). In doing so, as they live lives dedicated to God and His kingdom, our prayer is that God will use each them to be a "repairer of the breach" (between God and humanity) and "the restorer of the streets in which to dwell" (by pointing others to Christ).
Ever since my husband and I began our parenting journey, we have had a burden that our children would grow up to love and serve God with all their heart, soul, mind, and strength (Deut.6:4-9). Above all else, this has been our vision for them. In a society whose foundations have been ravaged by the effects of sin, and whose paths become dead-ends, our hope and prayer for our children is that they will choose the right path.-- God’s path – for their lives. Our heart’s desire for them has always been that they will live lives built on the foundations of God’s word and place their trust in Christ, the chief cornerstone (Eph 2:20). We have prayed that they would "see and ask for the the ancient path" (Jer.6:16) which is Christ – the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). In doing so, as they live lives dedicated to God and His kingdom, our prayer is that God will use each them to be a "repairer of the breach" (between God and humanity) and "the restorer of the streets in which to dwell" (by pointing others to Christ).
I realize that as a mom, there are no guarantees that my children will grow up to love and serve God. We have seen the children of many Godly families completely leave Christ. God is the one who calls us to Himself and it is up to each of us to answer that call. We have just begun to reach the middle of our journey. We have quite a way to go and much still to learn. My hope and prayer, however, is that as I do my best to remain faithful to the task God has set before me, He will bless it according to His grace, mercy, and will.
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