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| disclaimer: neither parent placed these stickers on his face :) |
Eyes shut to the hardness of my own heart,
I fumble about our little home,
correcting this attitude,
disciplining that failure,
all the while growing
more
and more
impatient.
I adore my children.
But I am to the breaking point,
and I grit my teeth as I do my best
to not scream!
It is there,
in that place
when my heart is on the verge of
spewing all its latent ugliness,
that I hear You gently whisper,
"You are just like them."
A loving rebuke to Your child.
Thank you, Father, for that
much-needed reminder:
How can I demand that my
babies act any better than
I'm acting on the inside?
We are all desperate for You.
Thank You that You do not
leave us to ourselves.
Thank You that You use
Your Word to teach us:
"Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher...You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." (Luke 6: 39-40, 42)
And thank You for
Your patience with me,
even when mine
runs thin with
the precious little ones
You have so mercifully given me.
My heart longs to be like You,
the perfect Parent,
my Teacher,
to be fully trained by You.
Although it hurts at the time,
I cherish Your tender rebukes.
They mean You truly love me.
And even though I know
I am not all that I should be,
I am not who I once was.
You are growing me.
Bit by bit.
Amen!
Such wise words! I think God gives us kids so we see how His words come to life and we know exactly what our behavior looks like to Him when we falter. All the explicit instructions that He gives us (show grace and mercy, say kind words, have patience) is lived out when parenting. I'm *constantly* reminded that whatever frustration I'm feeling during a difficult season must surely be what God feels when he sees my sour attitude or unforgiving heart.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great reminder that while we are the parents here, we are are still children of a loving and merciful Father. We have as much to learn as our own children do.