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I don’t know anyone who doesn’t want to bless their children. We try multiple means. We provide gifts, clothing, housing, and food. We take them on vacations and try to give them meaningful and fun experiences.
We bless them with an education, both formal and informal. We help them along to discover how God has made them and how they should live. Most importantly, we bring them to Christ and introduce them to His presence.
But broaden your thinking to include this truth found in the Proverbs.
A righteous man who walks in his integrity—how blessed are his sons after him. (Proverbs 20:7)
A RIGHTEOUS MAN
Righteousness is moral and spiritual rightness. A man who thinks the right thoughts, carries the right emotions, and makes the right choices. This is only found in a mother or father who have surrendered to Christ, who are daily drawing near to the Father and being cleansed by Him and filled with His Spirit. Who are abiding in Christ.
Real righteousness comes from God’s rightness (which is perfect) flowing through the surrendered, humble, imperfect life of the hungry follower. It is manifested in right thoughts, right speech, and righteous behavior. The right man or woman doing the right thing in the right way at the right time.
WHO WALKS IN INTEGRITY
Integrity is soundness. Just as an engineer makes sure a building is structurally sound—no weakness or defects nor anything that could cause a collapse—so a righteous man gains, over time, moral and spiritual soundness.
No man is perfect, of course, but any young man or woman, who chooses the right path and submits to the right Savior can be led in “all the right paths for (God’s) name’s sake.” Over the years, growing integrity develops, and he becomes a man who is above reproach. A man that is hard for Satan to outwit for he understands and resists the schemes of the devil, clothed in God’s full armor. A man of prayer and humility, a man of deep dependency and aggressive obedience.
HOW BLESSED
… are the children of a righteous man who walks in integrity. They have a stack-pole in their life that gives them a center. A way to measure what is righteous and good. “Well, I know what my dad, my mom would do in this situation.”
These parents bless their children with a model for life. Even in their imperfections they model humility and quickness to clear their conscience and admit their sin. Pride and all its tentacles is minimized when righteousness is expressed in a godly life.
Want to leave your kids the greatest treasure? Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, and mind, and follow Him by His grace and the power of His Spirit aggressively. Build a life of growing integrity. Live for the glory of God to give a model for your children and all those around you. Be a conduit for the life of God to thirsty, searching hearts.
You don’t have to be a flashy man, or a super-creative mom. You can be boisterous or quiet. Super-active or fairly sedentary. You just have to keep making the right choices as you humbly cooperate with God. Integrity comes over time and stands the test of time.
Do the best you can physically for your kids but remember that your greatest gift is to show them His righteousness and walk with integrity.
Copyright © 2025 by Bill Elliff @ billelliff.org. No part of this article may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from Lifeword.org