Like mother, like daughter
The problem with being a mom is that you are always and ever being watched and copied. From what you read in the bathroom to how you act when a car cuts in front of you in traffic, your behavior is all being carefully recorded in the minds and hearts of your children.
ARGH! That is a truth that causes me pain! You mean they are going to turn out like ME?! Help!
This is the bad news. It is also the good news. God set us parents to be a model of Him to our children. They look to us for direction. We say, in a sense, “Come follow me,” to our children, by the way we live. Our facial expressions, our treatment of the elderly, our gratitude towards our husband for the paycheck we live on, our attitude towards keeping the speed limit, our food preferences, our goodness—it’s all up to us how our children will learn to act, will learn how to live.
I’d like that sobering thought to govern my daily actions, but it sure is easy to forget . . . until I end up correcting my child for imitating my bad behavior!
If we don’t want our kids to depend on sweets and chocolate as a way to cope with stress, guess what? We’ve got to teach them a better way! If we want them to keep their room clean, guess what? We’ve got to clean up our messes and organize our home better ourself. If we don’t want them to criticize or talk badly about others, guess what? We’ve got to model daily for them how to deal with other people’s shortcomings in a positive way. If we want them to respect authority, guess what?
Yep . . . .
We are hopeful that our children will do better than we do, and be better than we are—and often they far excel us. But in many ways, when we’ve finished raising our children, we’ll be looking in the mirror!
I’m thinking on that today.
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