Ungraceful parenting..

I wish I wrote the post I'm going to share with you, but Rachel {from Femina} did. I so often feel like she takes thoughts and lessons I'm learning straight from my head and writes them out. I am enjoying this :)

Either way, if you have a minute or two, check out her post on "Ungraceful Parenting". Such good truths to remember and hold fast as a parent.

I think these truths are even more important to stick to as a mother. It's so easy to be the "push over" parent or to allow daddy to do all the disciplining, but that is not what we are called to as mothers. We, just as much as fathers, need to stand firm on God's truth and raise our children with consistent, joyful discipline {yes, I said joyful!}. Finding the "happy medium" can be a challenge, but it's worth it.

Our children are worth it. They are worth our own self-evaluation, selflessness and humility.

This part of Rachel's post was especially convicting to me:

"When we ignore sins our children are caught up in, that is not giving them grace. That has a different name, and it is judgement. Think of Romans 1:24, “Therefore God gave them over to their sins”. That was not an example of grace. Sin is like water. Children can drown in even a little bit. Looking away when your kid is stuck in some petty sin is like walking away from a kid floundering in really shallow water, and it is not grace. If you love your children, you grab them and haul them on out of that. You get them all the way out. You don’t watch from the house to see if it gets a lot worse. You don’t decide that it is their problem, and wish them the best. You don’t decide that there will be more time another time to get them out of that water another day. You don’t sit beside the pool and chat to friends or post about it on Facebook. Grace is action.

Grace is not changing your mind about that bite of broccoli because you know you aren’t going to win. Grace is not deciding to let a kid stay outside because they stomped at you when you told them to come in. Grace is not deciding that it isn’t a big deal that your daughter is yelling at you. Grace is not a coward."

Praying that God teaches me to be a graceful momma in all ways, even in discipline. Praying that I wouldn't sit back and allow my children to drown in their sin, but that I would passionately and lovingly take action to lead them away from sin and temptation {through discipline, being an example and taking time to teach them}.

This journey through motherhood is a tough one and it's only just begun! But I'm in this for the long-haul. I'm here to stay and I will fight the good fight to bring glory to God and to love my children how He has called me to. They are worth it. More than that, God is worth it -- my obedience, my love and my life.

{A post of pictures coming soon ::grin::}