Over the past 10 years I have found myself saying more than once, “Wow! There is really good wisdom and guidance in the Bible!” Often those words were then followed with the thought of “If only I knew this when I was younger!”
You would think having those revelations would have prompted me to go to God’s word first when confronted with less than stellar behavior from my kids. Unfortunately there was not a pause button on my kids or the task I was in the middle of and time outs, scolding, consequences, and yelling came as quick fixes in the chaos. I have learned recently with my oldest though, that some things are a heart issue. No amount of my disappointment (or scolding!) over the years had changed her heart with lying.
I have also been learning that God is as much at work on my heart through the kids He has blessed me with as He is at work on their hearts!
“Desire without knowledge is not good- how much more will hasty feet miss the way!”
Proverbs 19:2 NIV
No matter how much I wanted to have the right response or the perfect discipline strategy, my lack of knowledge in applying His truth caused me to miss my daughter’s heart. In January I had made a renewed priority to be intentional daily with my time getting into His Word. I definitely saw the difference when I chose to start the day on my own strength instead of inviting the Spirit to guide my steps (and my tongue)! My time reading and reflecting on His truths prepared me to finally see what I was missing with my daughter’s heart issue.
About a month and a half ago she got tangled up in a lie with my husband and I. I was dismayed because she knew how we felt about lying and how God viewed it AND it was the focus of kids’ church that month! My response to her was not from me, standing in the kitchen looking at her, I felt the presence of the Spirit. I felt the seeds I had been planting since January, that intentional time in the Word, was about to produce fruit. The spirit had my heart and the words from my mouth. It was powerful for me knowing my weakness and how I would normally respond.
This time, before I used a lot of my words, I patiently directed her to The Word. I had her look up verses on lying. As she found each one she read it to herself, then she would read it to me, and we talked about what it meant before she looked up the next one. When we were done reading what God has to say on lying we prayed together, thanking Him for his truth and guidance, asking Him to help make her strong in this weakness and praising Him for His ever present patience and love…with both of us! Since then I have seen a change in her heart that I had not seen before with any of my approaches!
“The one who gets wisdom loves life; the one who cherishes understanding will soon prosper.” Proverbs 19:8 NIV
Discipling our kids in the Word of God is so important, the fruit it yields is proof of that! Consistent, heart felt time will prepare you and your kids to face the daily messes and provide encouragement that He is always there to help you up when you fall, always ready to meet you right where you are. My prayer is that my kids will read His word later in life will be able to say, “I am thankful I learned this when I was younger!”
This Week’s Marble
- The book of Proverbs has 31 chapters, perfect for reading one per day!
- Teach your kids to highlight one thing that is important to them that they read each day.
- Text scripture to your kids from what you read.
- Cool Idea: Work on making a set of 365 3×5 cards with one verse on each card. Present the set to your child when their last marble is used up before you send them out into the world. I have 413 marbles (weeks) left with my daughter so this is doable if I do one card per week!
michelemariekotasek 