Is there a connection? I think there must be.
Today, Chris and I decided to go camping with the kids. But in order to do that there are things around the house that need to be done. The grass needs to be cut, the house cleaned, laundry finished, etc. The kids don't really whine anymore about their daily chores. (Thanks for the chore chart idea, Jenny.) But if you tell them to do something else, like... picking up their own stupid toys out of the yard, well apparently that's just unreasonable. They were created to play, right? To be served hand and foot by their maid, oops, Mother, right? Grrrrr.
At the start of things, they flopped and slumped and whined and dragged their feet. My gracious response? "Waaa-waaa-waaa. Boohoo. Hate it for ya. You are part of this family. Good, bad and difficult. What is our motto?"
*eye rolls* "Do the right thing at the right time whether you want to or not." *sigh*
Suppressing the urge to strangle my offspring, I respond with "Obedience with a bad attitude is the same as disobedience."
They got my meaning... if they follow the letter of the law and do their chores with these attitudes, we won't go anywhere. I don't care how clean the house is. Ingrates.
And then somewhere along the way I begin to think about my own heart. Dang. Self-righteousness has a definite appeal to it. I don't whine out loud that much anymore but my heart flops and slumps and drags, fighting the will of God. I'm not grateful for more work. I'm much more inclined to sit on my rump. Does this mean that I'm ungrateful for the blessings of God? That I don't want to serve Him but be served by Him? I think the answer has to be "Yes."
So where does that leave me? My children are sinners just like their momma. Yuck.
First Catechism:
Q. 42: Who can change a sinner's heart?
A. The Holy Spirit alone.
Q. 63: How can you get the help of the Holy Spirit?
A. God has told us to pray for the Holy Spirit's help.
What am I teaching my children? Am I teaching them the power of the gospel? Or am I teaching them to try harder-do better? Hmmm. What do I depend on: the gospel or myself? Who do I serve: myself or Christ?
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la, la, la
I cannot hear you. My righteousness far exceeds my childrens'.
However, that's not really working much for me.
It's so hard to remember that our goal as parents should not be behavior modification but sanctification. This needs to start in us as the moms. I know that my focus is usually to make my life easier, more comfortable, less stressful, etc. Boy, do I need the Holy Spirit in this!!
So did you guys go camping?
So does that include my impatient attitude today?
Great, thanks! I was ready to just blame my impatience on my children for not reading my mind. Now you say maybe it is my sin?
I hope it rains on your camping trip.
OK, I don't really hope that :)
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