Do Not Just Say It, Enforce It

The Bible ask: "What kind of father is it who does not correct his son?" Answer: "Not much of a father!"

We do not know if that is how Eli, the High Priest, got started with Hophini and Phinehas, his two sons. We simply read, "His sons made themselves vile, and he did not restrain them" (1Sam 3:13 NKJV). Perhaps Eli heard about the terrible things his sons were doing and said, "Now boys, you know you should not do that." And the boys said, "Yes Daddy, " then went right back to defrauding the worshipers who came to the temple and seducing the women. The issue was not that Eli did not tell his children the right things, it is that he did not enforce what he was telling them. No dobt you do not know of any parents who tell their kids, "Go rob a bank, ten or twenty years in prison will do you good." Now, those parents probably said all the right things. A lot of prison inmates' parents said the right things too. But what is missing in so much well-intentioned parenting is enforcement. Eli was not enforcing the truth, he was only stating it. He did not pull his boys from their posts and strip them of their privileges. He let them keep doing it - while telling them they ought not to do it. Parent(s), do not just say something - do something! If your children are going astray and you keep quiet, you are sparing yourself and sacrificing them. The most caring thing you can do as a parent is to discipline your children in love.