Children and Arrows

​Psalm 127:3–5 (NIV): “Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. 
         
As a member of 4-H for nine years, I participated in many projects, including photography, model aircraft, model watercraft, pie-baking, and others. If anyone asks about my favorite, I have to answer: archery.
 
Now, though archery was my favorite project, it was not my best project. I could never hit a target consistently. Maybe I should reword that sentence: I could never consistently hit the target.
 
I placed a hay bale in our yard behind our house and tacked a target to it. Every day, I practiced placing an arrow on my string. Every day, I practiced pulling the string back to my cheek. Every day, I practiced sighting down the arrow. Every day, I practiced releasing. Every day, I never hit a bull’s eye.
 
But, some days I hit the target!
 
No matter the outcome, I was out there shooting target each day. My parents and my leaders drilled into my head: “Practice makes perfect.” In my case, “practice makes permanent” was more likely.
 
I did not become a warrior, in any shape or form. A warrior can shoot an arrow straight, true, and consistent, hitting his mark every time. A warrior realizes his purpose and passes that purpose onto his arrow. 
 
The Psalmist says that children are like arrows in the hands of a warrior. A child is supposed to be trained and prepared for the day when he or she will be released into the world. A child on that day should be able to be shot straight and true, because of the parent’s training. On that day, the parent should let that child go, because they both have been preparing for all their lives for the arrow to be released.
 
However, often as parents and children, we desire to go fishing with arrows, instead of warring with arrows. A fisherman ties a string to his arrow so that he can pull his arrow back to him. That is not the right image.
 
A parent is a warrior, preparing his child to be released and then releasing.