FIghting My Battles

I was thinking today about what I do as a mom.  Many of the things I do are pretty mundane. I do laundry, prepare meals, clean the house, bathe the children, change diapers, wipe noses, wipe bottoms, wipe faces, wipe tables, wipe counters, wipe chairs (or anything else in the house that needs to be wiped), The list goes on. At the end of the day I am exhausted, and many days I feel there's nothing really to show for it. 

I also teach my children. What I teach my children is very important to me.  My children have a lot to learn.  They need me to teach them over and over and over again. I am for sure not the perfect teacher.  I have many opportunities every day to teach them in obedience and respect and many times I fail. 

I have a list of things to do and my son is eating his food very slowly, complaining, and pouting.  Do I teach him to thankfully eat what is set before him in a timely manner, or do I let him get his way so I can stay on my agenda?  Naptime finally comes and I put all three down.  I sit down to rest or read and I hear evidence that they are not resting. They are not necessarily being naughty, but still disobeying. Do I pretend that I don't hear them or do I get up and teach them that they need to obey right away, all the way, with a happy heart?  What if it's the THIRD time? Do I lose my temper, threaten them, and show them who's boss? Or do I calmly discipline them out of love and shepherd them according to the way my Father shepherds me?

I have to remind myself every day of this incredible duty I have been given.  I don't always like it, I don't always feel like doing what I know I need to do.  But it blows my mind to think that God has entrusted me with these three precious souls for just a short time. Each act of disobedience is a gift.  A chance to teach them what is right.  One of my children gives me many more chances to train and teach than the others. I think God must have something big for him because he gets more lessons than the others.  I try to be thankful for these times because not only is God giving me opportunities to train him, He is training me.  And there will be a day when the time runs out and it's too late.

I am learning so much about being a mother.  It's not only about providing for their physical needs, what I can give them or what fun activities I can do with them.  Those things are good, but it's really about teaching them to give, to love others, to submit to authority, to fear God.  It is a battle I am constantly fighting myself, how can I teach them what I don't even have a handle on? 

The world says you can have it your way, do what you want. The bible says you are to be a servant, set apart for God.

The world says it is good to make a lot of money and have a lot of stuff.  The bible says the love of money is the root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. 1 Tim. 6:10

The world says to strive for perfection. The bible says to strive for holiness. 

The world says you need to give your kids a good self esteem.  The bible says you need to put your confidence in God. 

The world says you are perfect the way you are.  The bible says all are sinners and need to be saved by grace.

The world says the way we look matters.  The bible says our heart matters.

The world says that Christians are weak and foolish.  The bible says that God's power is made perfect in our weaknesses.

These are things I need to constantly remind myself of.  But I have hope that God is doing a work in me, and as my children watch me fight my battles, God will be equipping them to fight theirs.