Today has been a day of bad reactions. It all began this morning when I woke up late and itching. Then, what began with impatience and whining (on everybody’s part) turned into a complete loss of cool (on mine). I totally blew it, and I’ve spent the whole day feeling badly about it.
I absolutely hate when I model bad behavior for my children. I mean, they have enough other examples of that, right? But, sometimes I do. I sin, and they see it. And, very few things make me feel more like a failure. Are you with me?
So, how can we come back, how do we make things right? First, by admitting we’re wrong. And, not just to God…to them. I think they need to see how repentance works. They need to see that we’re not just sorry. They need to see us change. And, that’s hard, which is something else they need to see sometimes. I think our children need to see that living like Christ is worth the struggle we sometimes face, that our flesh fights just as hard as theirs does. When we succeed in the struggle, they can see Christ as our source of strength. When we fail, they can see Him as the giver of grace. And the most important thing, really, is that they see Him. So, like Paul said, “I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses…”
As for today’s other bad reaction, let’s just say there’s a reason some hair care products tell you to test the product on a small patch of skin first….