Life Lessons

               "You then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself?"
                                                                     Romans 2:21


"Nothing is more inconsistent and vain than the attempt to teach others without teaching ourselves.  Only what the teacher has really mastered and thoroughly made his own can he successfully communicate to others.  In the higher sphere of the life-truth which a parent has to impart, it holds far more good; it is the lesson I first teach myself that I can really teach my child.  One of the first laws in the science of home education is that it depends far more on example than precept; what parents are avails more than what they say.  There is not one of the great lessons for the child which the parent must not first himself learn."

                                             -Andrew Murray
                                             "How to Raise Your Children for Christ" 



These words hit me fast and hard as I read them the other night. What kind of example am I setting for my children?  Do they see the light and beauty of Christ shining in my life or do they see selfishness and anger?

Hard questions come tonight.  
What is my true reflection?  My self?  My Savior?

My little ones often reflect the truth.  When sister yells at brother and brother hits sister.  It can be because they have witnessed those tiny seeds of anger in me.  When frustration rises and words are spoken a little too loudly - they see and they mirror. 


Gentleness, soft answers, peace filled living - this is what makes my Lord smile.  This is what the mirror should reflect.


Perhaps, if I want to see the fruits of the Spirit lived out in my children's words and actions, then I must practice them first and show them the way. 
I must learn the lessons before I can impart them.

So, starting with self-control. . . patience. . . gentleness. . . I begin my own education of sorts.  But, I have a wonderful teacher who taught and lived the very truth I am striving for.  And there is hope and forgiveness in Him.