We have been reading “You and Me Forever – Marriage in Light of Eternity” by Francis and Lisa Chan with our couple’s growth group. It is an amazing book that is available for free at www.youandmeforever.org. Like in his previous books, Pastor Chan shares scriptural truth with an eternal perspective that makes you want to tear down every idol built up in your life.
The book gave me a very different perspective in the responsibility of raising kids. It also gave me a new perspective in an old verse: “Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them!” (Psalm 127: 4-5).
I don’t think I ever reflected on the fact that it is good to fill your quiver with arrows BUT you still have to sharpen the heads, inspect the fletching and make sure is fully attached, make sure the shaft is straight, and that it doesn’t have cracks or splinters. If the head is not sharpened, the arrow wont penetrate its target; if the fletching falls, the arrow will spin out of control; if the shaft is not straight, it would fly at random angles; if it has cracks, the arrow would break; and if it has splinters, it would hurt the warrior’s hands once it is let loose.
Keeping an arrow sharpened requires grinding to keep the fletching attached. It needs to be tightened to keep the shaft straight. To be splinter-free, it requires heating in and hooking. All of these things put a lot of stress to the arrow, but isn’t it worth it if once you let it loose, you know it will serve its purpose?
It’s important to define the purpose of our arrows. Are they being upkeep for battle, to train once in a while, or simply to age in a quiver? Just like arrows our children will be let loose and they will fly their own course, but it will be up to the warrior’s upkeep if they serve their purpose and hit the target.