“Woe to you, O land, when your king is a child… Blessed are you, O land, when your king is the son of nobles, and your princes feast at the proper time—for strength and not for drunkenness!” Ecclesiastes 10:16a, 17

Parenting Royalty

Walk His Way Revisited

Standing in line at the grocery store, the headlines of a tabloid newspaper caught my eye. The article purported to “tell all” about how the little British prince, now one year old, was being reared and trained by his parents. If the article had been in the newspaper, I admit I would have read it. But no way was I going to buy one of those outrageous tabloids!

Several thoughts came to mind. I began to wonder, just how privileged is the little prince? Does he have lots of expensive toys? Top-of-the-line clothing? Are the tutors lined up for when he starts his academic life? He has the run of a castle. He will grow up hearing the words, “Others can; you cannot.”

His parents seem like reasonable people. If they are wise, they will not indulge his whims. They will not give in to his demands for more, but teach him to appreciate what he already has. They will demonstrate that enough is good enough. They will live as commonly as they can, so he will one day relate to common people, which is almost everyone in the kingdom. They will not indulge him as special and privileged, but will look ahead to his future and what he needs to become, that he might be wise and compassionate, and show good judgment. They must teach him to manage himself and others well.

They are preparing him to rule as king.

Then it hit me. God is preparing His children to rule as kings and priests. He is parenting us in much the same way as anyone should who is training a leader. He knows better than to indulge our every whim and our pleas for more. He has provided for our needs, and has given us far beyond our needs in most cases, and then tells us His grace is sufficient for everything else. He walks with us through life with an eye to the future.

He teaches us to love the common, the ordinary, and the outcast among us. He shows us that we are no better than anyone else. He shows us how to lead by serving. He has given us a live-in tutor, the Holy Spirit, who teaches us all we need to know. He gives us the run of the place, because “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” 

But He also sets boundaries in place. He tells us, “Others can; you cannot.” This is great wisdom, for He has consecrated us—set us apart to be useful to Him.

And we are royalty, you know. We are daughters of the King. And one day, when all is ready, we will rule and reign with Him.

Father, what a privilege it is to be born into Your royal family. May we walk worthy of being kings and priests, rulers in the kingdom. And may we learn our lessons well. In the name of Jesus, Amen.