My nine-year-old boy (Joseph), like many boys, loves to wrestle with his cousins and friends. So, whenever some of them enrolled in martial arts wrestling classes, it really pulled on him. He was worried that he wouldn't be able to keep up with them, and they would beat him at wrestling, which would be a terrible thing. He was pretty sure we would not agree to let him go, but he asked us anyway and tried to tell us how important it was for him to keep up with the other boys. Well, he knows how his papa is about that sort of thing: he is not in favor of the children being in sports, etc. that take up a lot of time, and where the children will be with other worldly kids and possibly the wrong atmosphere.
But, wisely, my husband did not give him a flat out “no.” Knowing how my husband feels about this sort of thing, this really surprised me. Instead, he would get down in the floor with our son and wrestle with him, and tell him how tough he would have to be if he went to martial arts class. Well, this went on for several weeks. Then one day when we were doing family devotions together, it came around to Joseph's turn to read from the Bible. He read the next verse: “The Lord is my defense...” Immediately, he exclaimed, “I don't need to go to martial arts!” And that was the end of it! He found his answer in the Word!
Sister Sharon, USA