A Matter of the Heart

I used to feel that I had to be the perfect parent.  Why would anyone want to be the perfect parent?  Because we think that our children are a reflection of who we are.  This is true, to a degree, but what are we more concerned with?  How we look to others or what is going on in the heart of our children?  Because the heart is the root of their behavior.  If we know our children's hearts, then we will know how to respond to their behavior.

I also woke up one day and realized that I don't control my children.  I can't control anyone, except for myself.  I have been given the role as parent in order to guide my children.  I can pray for them, and lead them in the right direction, but ultimately they have free will.

My kids asked me just last week, to retell the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.  They sat in silence, eyes wide, as I recounted the part where Satan deceives Eve into doubting God and sinning against Him.  God loved them so much that He gave them free will, to make their own choices, regardless of whether they are good or bad choices.  Just like God, we must allow our children to make choices even if they must fail so that we can love them through their consequences.  God always promises to take us back with open arms.  He does not, however, promise that the consequences will be wiped away.  He loves us enough to let us learn from the choices we make.  

Isn't it the same with our children?  We should thank God for the "bad" choices our little ones make because it is a true revealer of what is in their hearts.  A professor once said that in the same way, we should thank God for the sinfulness that is revealed in our hearts because God is allowing us the opportunity to see ourselves for what we really are, and the potential for Him to change us.  We need to see our children as God sees us, imperfect but completely loved and formable.