Parenthood A Sacred Trust

Selected from a 1905 writing by Ella Kellog
Revised and edited by Rachel Weaver

Part I

No occupation, profession or mission in life is of so great importance, no privilege so high and holy, no calling so full of wonderful possibilities as that of parenthood. We are entrusted, in a great measure, with the working out of God’s ideal for each child in our family. To the extent that this trust is fulfilled, these individual characters shall be rounded out in fullness of noble man- or womanhood, or dwarfed by neglect and deformed by sin.

It is a blessed privilege to give a careful start to the little pilgrim just entering upon life’s journey, and to develop with reverent care the image planted there by God, the Creator. It is a wonderful opportunity for us to so accustom the child to a pure and holy atmosphere that he cannot breathe freely in any other. If we neglect these very impressionable first years of our child’s life and let them slip by unimproved, no matter how hard we work in later years, the result will never be as perfect as it might have been if we had carefully trained them early in precept and principle.

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Governing Your Family

“For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.” Genesis 18:19

There are three things very remarkable in this verse.

1. That Abraham used parental authority in governing his family: “For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him.” He did not think it enough to pray for them, or to teach them, but he used the authority which God had given him—he commanded them.

2. That he cared for his servants as well as his children. In Genesis 14:14, we learn that Abraham had three hundred and eighteen servants born in his house. He lived after the manner of patriarchal times; as the Arabs of the wilderness do to this day. His family was very large, and yet he did not say, “They are none of mine.” He commanded his children and his household.

3. His success: “they shall keep the way of the LORD.” It is often said that the children of good men turn out ill. Well, here is a good man, and a good man doing his duty by his children—and here is the result. His son Isaac was probably a child of God from his earliest years. There is every mark of it in his life. And what a delightful specimen of a believing, prayerful servant was Eliezer! (Gen. 24.)

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The Christian Response to Caring for the Elderly

Unwanted parents long for the grave

Even though I should not complain, but rather thank God, for all my worthy children, I will still try to awaken you to more carefulness, humility, virtue, honor, and obedience, so that you at no time in joy or sorrow become unthankful for your parents. I have often been asked, “Why can a father and mother raise twelve children, but twelve children cannot take care of their father and mother?”

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