Most Gracious Lord,
Help us remember, in all the moments of our days, that taking time to cultivate a close relationship with our children is what will open their hearts for you. Give us strength and grace to listen to their dreams, to comfort them in their sorrows, and to make ourselves available for their needs. Help us to remember that they want our attention more than our service. Thank you that you make yourself available to people and that you always make time for each of us.
Amen. -From Ministry of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson
...my kiddos want my attention more than my service...ouch. the way I show love is to serve...and I'm not so good at giving quality time. ouch. I am convicted that I prefer to take care of the "needs" of cooking, cleaning, shopping, etc, and not give much undivided attention. I have "attention deficit disorder" of the mommy variety. After just a few minutes of legos or reading books or imaginary play, I am bored and thinking of all the household tasks I could do, or e-mails I want to write or check...and so on. I fear that my children will not have many memories of my just playing with them and loving on them with quality time and focused attention. Oh sure, I know they will remember all of the fun outings and play dates I plan and take them too, but I am much better at getting out and doing activities with them than I am with staying at home and playing. Guessing maybe there are a few other moms out there that can relate to this....think it is mostly my sinful selfishness rearing up again, among other sin issues, but this chapter and prayer in the book made me pause and reflect and realize that I can do better, and in trying to give more attention and model Christ, perhaps the relationship that I build will help open my kiddos hearts to Christ. And that, is worth all of the lego sessions in the world. I will play "piggy" and "doggy" and "super heroes" til I am blue in the face if I can "see" the bigger picture of their eternal salvation and my role in guiding them and leading them to Christ...it just keeps slipping away and getting blurry as I focus on the practical needs...so easy to lose that bigger picture
3 comments:
I hear ya loud and clear. There's a heart issue to deal with, but all those tasks do need to get done as well.
So serving is good, and checking email is good. I think it's interesting how we measure our parenting goodness by things and tasks and shoulds and activities and not always the heart.
Some of the people I totally look up to (mainly pioneer women way back in the cowboy days) never made cute cupcakes, home made play dough, or took their kids on dates. They worked ALL DAY just to get things done cause that's how long it took. Soooo...
it just makes me think it's more of a heart thing than anything else cause there's nothin wrong with working and teachin the youngins to get-er-done. :)
Lovin you Laura.
Laura, gosh this hit home....I always feel like I only work around the kids and Daddy gets to be the playmate. There have been a few times I have thrown down the towel to just "Play". The kids ate it up but you are so right...I kept thinking of all that was waiting to be done.
Thank you for sharing and for the reminder to take time to play.
Hugs to you.
yes, like your fresh perspective on it, Linda...it IS a heart thing, and I think that is what I was headed toward...my heart needs to be desiring to cultivate relationships with my kiddos whether through work or play, that point them to Christ...and I think I was just convicted that my heart wasn't in the right spot. Good point about the pioneer women and our ancestors that worked from sun up til sun down and still raised their kiddos "well" :-)
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