February 5,2009
When I was in college, I had a professor who taught Old Testament. He realized that sometimes it was difficult to get anything out of the Old Testament when you were 19, so he made us all a challenge. The first part was that we all read the Old Testament. That would mean a significant session of reading every day. Every day we read, he wanted us to write in the margins of our Bible something that we could learn from what we had read. He wanted us to search for learning as we read those far away words from a distant people. I learned a lot that year. The secret was to search for the lesson and actually learn it. I’m 42 now and I don’t think I’ve changed much from when I was 19. The only difference is that it’s easier for me to see my weaknesses now.
This time though, instead of just reading the Old Testament. (which I am trying to read through again.), I think I need to find the lesson each day in my daily life. I think for today’s lesson, I’ve learned how important it is to keep trying to understand all the Lord has offered. I forget it sometimes when I read the scriptures and I forget it sometimes when I watch my son growing and realizing this day will never come again. The child he is today will be gone when he goes to bed and a new one wakes up each morning. I can’t skip over any of it because it’s all precious.
February 13th, 2009
This week I’ve been a lot more rigid with my kids about doing what I ask them to do. I’ve taken away the Internet for a week for all of them. DVDs and television are gone and will remain so until they ensure that the house is in the state that I’ve asked them to keep it for since they’ve been born and have ignored. Some might say it’s just a mother getting frustrated and over reacting, but I really feel it’s for them. I’ve been doing them disservice by being less strict. They’ve began to ask less of themselves. I’ve noticed my children having no problem with being mediocre or less. I think they’ve taken their cue from me. I haven’t demanded it of them. I’ve rewarded them for there lack of effort by letting get what they want and not making them earn the privilege.
Being strict is harder on me than them. I don’t enjoy it at all, but because I love them I see how it’s necessary. Maybe one of the reasons Heavenly Father wanted us to have families on this earth is so that we could more fully understand how He feels toward us. I would never compare myself to HeavenlyFather as a parent, but because of this earthly experience, I can better understand my relationship with my Heavenly Father.
