5 posts tagged “character issues”

I am so proud of my daughter Sydney!  She is such a giver!  The great thing is that she has so many opportunities to give, because she is part of such a generous church.

The Rock Church is currently in the midst of my favorite season of giving.  Every year we give out school supplies at our local fair's parade, turkey dinners at Thanksgiving and gifts for children at Christmas. 

Last year Sydney wanted to give everything in her hippo bank (it's not a piggy) to purchase Christmas gifts.  She was so excited to bring them to church and put them under the tree.  I even took the opportunity to teach her about getting more for her money when things are on sale :-).  See, she had originally not had enough to get as many gifts as she wanted to.  After encouraging her to pray that God would make a way for her to give more, I told her that one way He does that is by giving us great deals.  She was able to give the number of gifts that were in her heart to give.

Since then, she has had a whole new vision for her finances.  She gladly puts her money into savings, because she knows the bank will give her even more money to give.  So, she was very excited to have $50 in change to put towards school supplies.  We pitched in and purchased all the supplies necessary for 2 kids (including backpacks).  Again, she was able to bring them to the church and put them in the big pile to be given away.

Last Thursday we were able to spend some time helping assemble the bags for distribution.  Then she participated in the parade on Saturday where they were given away.  A full circle of generosity has been etched on her heart.  And now our eyes are set on turkey dinners.  We plan to do some blackberry picking and selling to raise some extra funds.

I share this to say that generosity must be intentionally instilled in our children.  It is important to make them active participants in giving.  It helps them know the heart of God & His desire for them to reach out.  If you are a part of The Rock Church, start raising funds now for Thanksgiving, do a neighborhood drive to gather more donations, take the kids to the store to purchase the meals and definitely have them help you bring the food to the church.  If you don't attend The Rock, there are lots of other opportunities in your community to help others.  The time to start is now, no matter what age they are!  Let's develope great habits in them now that will be automatic later.  Generosity is a must!

Proverbs 16:32 says, "He who is slow to anger is better then the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city."

This scripture was especially inspiring to me after a great message this last weekend from Denise Mira.  She shared at our church from her book No Ordinary Child.  I was totally pumped!  I felt so affirmed to keep doing what I'm doing, and expect what I'm expecting from my kids.  It was incredible stuff.

Needless to say, I read this scripture with a different perspective this week.  I read it with my son in mind.  Yes, he is only 11 months old, but God has had plans for him before he was in my womb.  So, I better pay attention, expect greatness and pray, pray, pray!

What I felt God speaking to me was to be wary of giving in to the pressure to toughen my boy up.  There is so much hype about boys needing to be able to tackle/fight/hold there own.  But God places a much higher priority on his character.  It is more important to God that Terryn has the fruits of the Spirit (including self-control) operating in his life, than whether or not he can hold the high score on a video game, do the most daring stunt or get the ball across the goal line.

I am not implying that my son should be a woose!  All the things I have listed are things I want him to enjoy doing.  However, it is worth nothing for him to be strong physically, if he has no regard for his behavior or those around him.  There are two great men living in my house.  And though one of them has yet to say many words, I pray his actions will be an oracle to those around him.  God has called him to greater things!

Today I was reading the passage in Acts where God tells Peter that "what God has cleansed you must not call common.” In this situation, God was preparing Peter to minister to someone who was not a Jew.  This may not seem like a big deal, but at that point, the church was brand new & had not yet reached out to the Gentiles (non-Jews).  God uses a vision, which includes the previous quote, to teach Peter that God's opinion, not that of culture/ custom/ society, is what should determine how he treats others. 

This was such a challenge to me.  It is so easy to place people in categories or on levels.  To act as if there are some people who are more worthy of my time than others is ludicris.  However, I am totally guilty of engaging in this kind of behavior.  The bottom line is that Jesus Christ considered every life worth giving His own.  And that God gave His Son for them.  So, who do I think I am to even contemplate anything but total equality?

This is the new motto I am attempting to implement into my life.  Last year, in a life coaching class, I learned that I am really motivated to get things done when I remind myself of the after effects.  My life's battery gets really charged from things being orderly and controlled.  However, I have this fun, fun, fun side of me that would rather live for the moment.  This is my constant battle!

So, when I would rather watch Rachael Ray or take a nap than do the laundry... I remind myself to "Hate the regret!"  Think about how frustrated I'm going to be when the things I have to do piled up to the point that I can't do anything I want to do.  I am in need of motivation.  And I'll be honest, my greatest motivation is the benefits to myself.  When I remember that I am robbing myself later by serving myself now, I will live a better life. 

So, in the eternal saga that is parenting, I am constantly considering what I can do to insure that my children have greater success in life than I have.  Not that my life is unpleasant by any means, but I believe every parent should want more for the next generation.

In the last couple of weeks, God has really been speaking to me about the tone of voice I use in response to certain situations.  As well as my frequently inappropriate attitude.  It's one of those things that I am reading about in my own personal times of reflection and prayer, then hearing about in the talks at church.  As a result, I have asked my husband for accountability and am really asking God for strength, insight and reminders when I am in the midst of it.

I am specifically focusing on being proactive vs. reactive with Sydney (who turns 4 in just 3 weeks!).  Our personalities are so similar that we can really push each others buttons and escalate a situation to an ugly place.  We both like to be in control, be right all the time and are very passionate/dramatic.  So, I have determined that I'm going to be the bigger person (what a novel idea as a parent) and refuse to be moved by her actions.  I really want to help her be able to process through some of the things that I still struggle with now.  I can't expect her to control her emotions if I allow myself to fly off the handle over pointless issues.

Anywho, last Sunday we were on our way to church and I opened up my bible to read Proverbs for the day (Nash was driving).  The first verse of chapter 15 says, "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger."  Upon reading that single verse I closed by bible.  Enough said!  When I explained to Nash why I was finished so quickly we both had a good laugh.  God is such a hoot!