(I am thinking of this in terms of child rearing, and family life, today.)
Like many of you, I suppose, I am frequently asked how I get my children to behave pleasantly, with good manners, obediently, respectfully, etc. Once I get over the thrill that someone is actually using those words to describe my children (who can also be selfish, disobedient, and ill mannered), I tell them the truth: We use biblical princicples.
Now, this is almost never well received. At best, it is met with the non believer's combo: a slight tilt of the head, closed mouth grin, "How cute" expression. Somewhere in the middle is, "That just wouldn't work at my house." At worst it is met with a "Well, that works because you have good kids." (Point of fact: I have sinful kids.)
Now, I know the bible is offensive to many just for being the bible. However, I can't help but think that if my response had been, "We roll them in peanut butter, light a candle, and chant 'butterflies are pretty' every day at 6 AM, that those folks would be leaving skidmarks to get to Costco for peanut butter.
So I am wondering, why is it that when we don't like the truth, we readily accept any other answer, no matter how ridiculous?
UPDATE: I thumbed through that offensive Book and found this:
Romans 1:25 (New International Version)
25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
Go figure, God even addresses our delusional tendencies ;-)
How true is that. We want a quick fix rather than working on teaching the Truth over and over again. Thank goodness God gives us the grace to be parents and raise our children.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the post it was challenging to think about. Even after listening to a weekend of Ted Tripp.
I agree, Living. Even after a weekend being bathed in Truth, parenting is tough. (My mom says it's not for woosies!) We have had a horrific day of homeschooling, and yet, I'm still grateful to have been schooling my kids today. How is that even possible? With God's grace alone!
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