We shared in the previous post about the importance of teaching and modeling healthy relationships with children. What they learn about relationships as a child will affect the way they build relationships as adults.
Here’s some of what God has to say about building healthy relationships with others. You can use this as a guide when working with the children He brings into your life.
Parents
“My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: For they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.”Proverbs 1:8-9
“Hear, my children, the instruction of a father, And give attention to know understanding; For I give you good doctrine: Do not forsake my law.” Proverbs 4:1-2
“Hear, my son, and receive my sayings, And the years of your life will be many. I have taught you in the way of wisdom; I have led you in right paths. When you walk, your steps will not be hindered, And when you run, you will not stumble. Take firm hold of instruction, do not let go; Keep her, for she is your life.” Proverbs 4:10-13
“My son, keep your father’s command, And do not forsake the law of your mother. Bind them continually upon your heart; Tie them around your neck. When you roam, they will lead you; When you sleep, they will keep you; And when you awake, they will speak with you.” Proverbs 6:20-22
“A wise son makes a glad father, But a foolish son is the grief of his mother.” Proverbs 10:1
“A wise son heeds his father’s instruction, But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.” Proverbs 13:1
“Whoever curses his father or his mother, His lamp will be put out in deep darkness.” Proverbs 20:20
“Listen to your father who begot you, And do not despise your mother when she is old.” Proverbs 23:22
Teachers
“And say: ‘How I have hated instruction, And my heart despised correction! I have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, Nor inclined my ear to those who instructed me! I was on the verge of total ruin, In the midst of the assembly and congregation.” Proverbs 5:12-14
“Receive my instruction, and not silver, And knowledge rather than choice gold; For wisdom is better than rubies, And all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her.” Proverbs 8:10-11
“Hear instruction and be wise, And do not disdain it.” Proverbs 8:33
“Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.” Proverbs 9:8-9
“He who keeps instruction is in the way of life, But he who refuses correction goes astray.” Proverbs 10:17
“Whoever loves instruction loves knowledge, But he who hates correction is stupid.” Proverbs 12:1
“He who disdains instruction despises his own soul, But he who heeds rebuke gets understanding.” Proverbs 15:32
“Listen to counsel and receive instruction, That you may be wise in your latter days.” Proverbs 19:20
“When the scoffer is punished, the simple is made wise; But when the wise is instructed, he receives knowledge.” Proverbs 21:11
“Apply your heart to instruction, And your ears to words of knowledge.” Proverbs 23:12
“Buy the truth, and do not sell it, Also wisdom and instruction and understanding.” Proverbs 23:23
Friendships
“My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause: Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil: Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood. Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives. So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.” Proverbs 1:10-19
“Do not envy the oppressor, And choose none of his ways; For the perverse person is an abomination to the Lord, But His secret counsel is with the upright. The curse of the Lord is on the house of the wicked, But He blesses the home of the just.” Proverbs 3:31-33
“Do not enter the path of the wicked, And do not walk in the way of evil. Avoid it, do not travel on it; Turn away from it and pass on. For they do not sleep unless they have done evil; And their sleep is taken away unless they make someone fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness, And drink the wine of violence. But the path of the just is like the shining sun, That shines ever brighter unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is like darkness; They do not know what makes them stumble.” Proverbs 4:14-19
“My son, if you become surety for your friend, If you have shaken hands in pledge for a stranger, You are snared by the words of your mouth; You are taken by the words of your mouth. So do this, my son, and deliver yourself; For you have come into the hand of your friend: Go and humble yourself; Plead with your friend.” Proverbs 6:1-3
“The righteous should choose his friends carefully, For the way of the wicked leads them astray.” Proverbs 12:26
“A perverse man sows strife, And a whisperer separates the best of friends.” Proverbs 16:28
“He who covers a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates friends.” Proverbs 17:9
“A friend loves at all times, And a brother is born for adversity.” Proverbs 17:7
“A man devoid of understanding shakes hands in a pledge, And becomes surety for his friend.” Proverbs 17:18
“A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” Proverbs 18:24
“Make no friendship with an angry man, And with a furious man do not go, Lest you learn his ways And set a snare for your soul.” Proverbs 22:24-25
“As iron sharpens iron, So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.” Proverbs 27:17
Sexual Relationships
My son, pay attention to my wisdom; Lend your ear to my understanding, That you may preserve discretion,
And your lips may keep knowledge. For the lips of an immoral woman drip honey, And her mouth is smoother than oil; But in the end she is bitter as wormwood, Sharp as a two-edged sword. Her feet go down to death, Her steps lay hold of hell. Lest you ponder her path of life—Her ways are unstable; You do not know them.” Proverbs 5:1-6“Drink water from your own cistern, And running water from your own well. Should your fountains be dispersed abroad, Streams of water in the streets? Let them be only your own, And not for strangers with you. Let your fountain be blessed, And rejoice with the wife of your youth. As a loving deer and a graceful doe, Let her breasts satisfy you at all times; And always be enraptured with her love. For why should you, my son, be enraptured by an immoral woman, And be embraced in the arms of a seductress?” Proverbs 5:15-20
“For the commandment is a lamp, And the law a light; Reproofs of instruction are the way of life, To keep you from the evil woman, From the flattering tongue of a seductress. Do not lust after her beauty in your heart, Nor let her allure you with her eyelids. For by means of a harlot A man is reduced to a crust of bread;
And an adulteress will prey upon his precious life. Can a man take fire to his bosom, And his clothes not be burned? Can one walk on hot coals, And his feet not be seared? So is he who goes in to his neighbor’s wife;
Whoever touches her shall not be innocent.” Proverbs 6:23-29“Whoever commits adultery with a woman lacks understanding; He who does so destroys his own soul. Wounds and dishonor he will get, And his reproach will not be wiped away. For jealousy is a husband’s fury;
Therefore he will not spare in the day of vengeance. He will accept no recompense, Nor will he be appeased though you give many gifts.” Proverbs 6:32-35“For at the window of my house I looked through my lattice, And saw among the simple, I perceived among the youths, A young man devoid of understanding, Passing along the street near her corner; And he took the path to her house In the twilight, in the evening, In the black and dark night. And there a woman met him, With the attire of a harlot, and a crafty heart. She was loud and rebellious, Her feet would not stay at home. At times she was outside, at times in the open square, Lurking at every corner. So she caught him and kissed him; With an impudent face she said to him: ‘I have peace offerings with me; Today I have paid my vows. So I came out to meet you, Diligently to seek your face, And I have found you. I have spread my bed with tapestry, Colored coverings of Egyptian linen. I have perfumed my bed With myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. Come, let us take our fill of love until morning; Let us delight ourselves with love. For my husband is not at home; He has gone on a long journey; He has taken a bag of money with him, And will come home on the appointed day.’ With her enticing speech she caused him to yield, With her flattering lips she seduced him. Immediately he went after her, as an ox goes to the slaughter, Or as a fool to the correction of the stocks, Till an arrow struck his liver. As a bird hastens to the snare, He did not know it would cost his life. Now therefore, listen to me, my children; Pay attention to the words of my mouth: Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways, Do not stray into her paths; For she has cast down many wounded, And all who were slain by her were strong men. Her house is the way to hell, Descending to the chambers of death.” Proverbs 7:6-27
We have much to do to teach our children wisdom. May God guide us in this great task.
“Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”
