We hope you enjoy this re-post from January 7, 2015. Be blessed! The Today’s Quote From God Team

And said, Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. – Job 1:21, King James Version (KJV)

According to Police Charge Hedge Fund Manager’s Son For Shooting And Killing His Father:

Thomas S. Gilbert Jr., a well-educated, 30-year-old socialite, has been arrested and charged with the fatal shooting of his hedge fund father, Thomas S. Gilbert Sr., a New York Police Dept. representative said…Police told Business Insider there was allegedly an “argument over money.” ABC News is reporting that investigators said that the father had discussed no longer paying his son’s rent and reducing his weekly allowance. The New York Post reports it was over a $200 cut in his monthly allowance.

According to the above-referenced report in the New York Post:

“He [Gilbert, Sr.) was cutting his [Gilbert, Jr.’s] allowance. He had been giving him $2,400 a month for rent and $600 for spending money, and he was cutting that to $400 a month for spending money,” a source said about Thomas Gilbert Sr., founder of the Wainscott Capital hedge fund. “They had argued about it before.”

I must admit, my first thought upon reading this story wasn’t “How tragic!” or “How sad!” It was “Why was Daddy still paying rent for and an allowance to a 30-year old man?” The answer is that he wasn’t. He was paying rent for and an allowance to a 30-year old boy.

The Gilbert family situation is tragic, and my heart goes out to the grieving souls involved. But this story emphasizes the desperate need to obey 1 Timothy 5:8. As a reminder of what the word “providing” means in 1 Timothy 5:8, providing for our families refers to much more than just financial provision. The Greek word “provide” in 1 Timothy 5:8 is “pronoeo” (pron-o-eh’-o), which means:

1. to perceive before, foresee
2. to provide, think of beforehand
3. to provide for one
4. to take thought for, care for a thing

Providing for one’s loved ones, therefore, includes foreseeing and thinking about the future needs of those loved ones, and then taking the necessary steps now to provide for those future needs.

Good character, which includes being able to provide for oneself, is one of the things God expects parents to provide to their children. Malachi 2:15 (AMP) makes it clear that doing so is one of God’s intended purposes of the marriage union:

And did not God make [you and your wife] one [flesh]? Did not One make you and preserve your spirit alive? And why [did God make you two] one? Because He sought a godly offspring [from your union]. Therefore take heed to yourselves, and let no one deal treacherously and be faithless to the wife of his youth. – Malachi 2:15

The Hebrew word for “godly” in this passage is “elohiym” (el-o-heem’), which is one of the Hebrew words that means, “God.” It appears 2,606 times in the Old Testament, and 2,346 times it means, “God.” It is translated “godly” one time, and that is in Malachi 2:15. What this means is this: parents have a duty to raise their children to be God-like in character, in thought, and in action. That’s part of what “providing” for our families includes. God, among other things, values a character marked by diligence and self-reliance.* He’s not too happy with slothfulness. By creating in their son a character of dependency rather than one of self-reliance, the Gilberts missed the boat.

If we are not extremely careful, we, too, will miss the boat when it comes to raising godly children. Be wary. Be vigilant. Be forward-thinking. Keep your nose in the Word of God and your hands stretched out in prayer so that you may access God’s wisdom in all aspects of providing for your loved ones – financially, in character, and otherwise.

* Self-reliance doesn’t mean that we can’t ask for and receive help when we need it. Failing to ask for help when we need it is a pride issue. Accepting help occasionally, however, is not the same thing as constantly living off of the charity of others.