Message

Praise the Lord Church. If you have been enjoying the service so
far, let me hear you shout a loud Hallelujah. Please stand up on
your feet and just sing this song before we pray.

Sing a worship song (Because he lives)

Let us pray

Prayer: Father we thank you for the success of the

service so far. Thank you for showing yourself
through all of these performances. Lord, as we
continue on into this service and begin to hear and
listen to you word, guide us to understand everything
you are trying to tell us through the preachers. In
Jesus name I have prayed.
You may now be seated.
As you know the theme for this year's children's week is Arrows
in the hand of a mighty man. Open your bibles to Psalm 127:4
which says:

As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are the

children of the youth.
Today, I am going to be focusing on how children are a gift from
the Lord. Can you please open to verse 3 of Psalm 127 which
reads:

Lo, children are an heritage of the Lord and the fruit

of the womb is his reward
One of the definitions of heritage is a special or individual
possession so what this verse is trying to imply is that children
come straight from the Lord and we are a reward to our earthly
parents. Children are here for a purpose. We are here to carry out
the Lord's doing. We are not here to bring pain or sorrow to
anybody but we are here to be blessings to our parents and the
nation.
Let me give you an example. Hannah. Now we all know
Hannah. She was barren for many many years until she prayed
and got her request. Not only did she have a child, her first child
became a kingmaker and she had 5 more children after him. 1
Samuel 1:27 says:

For this child I prayed; and the Lord hath given me my

petition which I asked of him.
This verse is telling us that Hannah begged for her request to be
answered and when it was finally answered, she rejoiced which
proves that children are a sign of joy and gladness not a burden
to the parents or a sign of trouble. Children benefit their parents
and in the Bible there was one specific child who eventually
rescued the whole world from eternal damnation and his name is
very familiar to all of us. Jesus. You see, children are God's
representatives. Children are perfect in the eyes of the Lord as
the Bible says in James 1:17 which is another verse I want you
to open to and it reads:

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above

and cometh down from the Father of Lights, with
whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
This verse suggests that children and youth are directly from
above and as we are all children including adults, we are all
perfect in the eyes of the Father. Here is another example which
I want you to and it comes from Genesis 33:5 and it says:

And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the women and the
children; and said, Who are those with thee? And he
said, The children which God hath graciously given
thy servant.
Children are graciously given to God's servants and they are
blessings to these people. God has given us to our earthly
parents. We are here to we continue God's plan which is to win
souls for Christ. Another example is Jacob. Jacob bore 12
children. Jacob had a son who became the prime minister and
the second most powerful person in a foreign land whilst Jacob's
other sons had their own tribes which we all descend from.
Another person who had plenty of children is Abraham.
Abraham was promised as many descendants as the stars in the
sky. This can be gathered from Genesis 15:5 and I want you to
open it. This verse states:

And he brought him forth abroad, and said, Look

now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able
to number them: and he said unto him, So shall thy
seed be.
God appeared to Abraham and promised him many children and
descendants as Abraham was God's servant which therefore tells
us that adults are blessed with children because they are his
servants and the children they bear will eventually grow up to
follow that legacy of God.
Can you open to Psalm 127:4 please as it is another topic I will
briefly speak about.

As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are

children of the youth.
How do children liken to an arrow you may ask yourself? Well,
children are a sense of protection to their parents however
parents have to craft their children in the way of the Lord like an
arrow is crafted to provide additional protection. An arrow is
crafted very carefully. You need to choose a stick, twig or branch
and begin to craft. By craft I mean to carve the twig and that is
the first step for a parent to create a God-fearing child. The
parent begins to train the child and teach them the things of God.
The crafter needs to sharpen the edges of the arrow to make the
part of the arrow that pierces skin and enemies and that is the
finishing touch parents have to do. The parents then have to
ensure that the children not only what they should do, but help
the child to know how to do it and why they are doing it. I know
I have mentioned the word parent quite a lot. But, who is a
parent? Most of you here right here might think that a parent is
the guardian and carer of a child or multiple children. However,
a parent does not have to bear a child to be a caretaker. A parent
is someone who plays a role in the life and development of a
child. For example, Mordecai was not Esther's father but he
played a massive role is her life and development. Everybody
rise up on your feet and begin to thank God for your family.

Prayer: Father we thank you for the message you have

told the congregation through your child. Lord help
us to appreciate the families we have and everything
you have blessed us with.

Amen. Thank you