He Leadeth Me...

Today, I watched an episode of the Dr. Phil show of a mother who used unusual punishment on her child. She punished her child in the following ways:

• hot sauce in the mouth for lying
• cold shower for disobeying
• locked in your room for back talking

..............this child is 5..........
After seeing this, I was in TEARS! For one thing, I was so upset that this little boy was being abused that I just wanted to reach through the television and grab the MOTHER and knock her in the head with something.

There are days when my son Caleb tries my patience in every single way. There are days when he doesn't listen to a single word out of my mouth. Some days he throws things while crying uncontrollably when I correct him for something. He says he hates me. He thinks he can "parent" my daughter. He throws the "prettiest" tantrums I have ever seen, and I promise you that any child who tried to challenge him in this area would lose. (and I am not proud of that) But honestly, there is not a single thing he could do that would make me do any of the above to him. 

Acting out is a part of growing up. It's how we learn boundaries, and if we aren't correcting our children's misbehaving, then we aren't doing our jobs.  But the number 1 job we have as parents is LOVING them. When we love them like we should, and when we seek God in our lives, all of the rest just falls into place. We make mistakes as God's children, every day. And if he punished us the way we punish our children, we might be grounded for life. But He shows us patience and mercy. So, I think I'm gonna try to do the same with my kids.

All of this has shown me that there are areas in my parenting that I could definitely improve. I'm not abusive with my children by ANY means. But some days, when I feel so very alone in my parenting, all I want to do is run away and cry my eyes out. That is the moment when I need to stop, take a deep breath, and say a prayer. Because God knows exactly who we are, and what we need and he loves me just like I love my babies. (Even when I kick and scream and cry after not getting my way.)

 Above all, I have realized that the most important thing for me to improve on is my patience with my children. They are a gift from God, not a right to have, and someday they will be gone. So from now on, I'm going to parent them by giving them my time, my love, my acceptance, and above all else, leading by example. And look to God for all of the answers. I may not be like the mother on that t.v. show, but there is always room for improvement.