Think Before You Speak!

    

      I began really thinking about this principle the other evening, when one of my children brought up a time in her life where a person, who was suppose to be mentoring her in the Bible, said something really nasty and wrong to her.  She was only 9 at the time of this incident, but all these years later, it still bothers her.  Someone she was suppose to look up to and who was suppose to be a godly example to her, treated her wrong.  They opened their mouth and caused a little one to dislike learning the Word of God.  My daughter admitted it turned her off to church for the longest time. 

"If anyone causes one of these little ones--those who believe in me--to stumble, it would be better for them if a large millstone were hung around their neck and they were thrown into the sea."

 ~ Mark 9:42 ~

     As we talked, I asked her if she had forgiven this person, and she said yes, but it still hurt when she thought about the situation.  Even after all these years, the mere thoughts of those words made her ache and brought tears to her eyes.  

     We have got to be careful about what we say and how we say it.  I don't know what that teacher was thinking when she spoke those harsh words to my daughter, but it left scars that only God can heal.  What if my daughter had refused to give anyone else a chance to teach her as she grew up?  What if it would have left my daughter unable to love God, because if the way she was treated was an example of God's love, she didn't want a part of it?  Thankfully, my daughter was set in her ways and knew this wasn't the way God wanted her to be treated and she decided to let it go and not hold a grudge.  She was saddened by the event, but not taken down.  The devil didn't get his way this time. 

     Parents, teachers, and even those who babysit our children, need to be aware that words can hurt!  They are lasting in our memories.  You may not even know what repercussions your words have until years later.  THINK BEFORE YOU SPEAK!!!!  

     Over the next few weeks I am going to be writing more about how we use our words.  I will also be reviewing a book I am reading titled: Keep it Shut by Karen Ehman.  I believe there is life and death in words we speak.  What will you choose?  

  

    

Let's Add it Up

     Have you taken a look at the world around you? My heart was saddened when I saw some advertisements this morning. We are never happy with what we have received.  One day there are sales on items for us to buy before Christmas, but that didn't end on December 24th.  Now we see ads for sales after Christmas.  WHY ARE WE NEVER SATISFIED???  Why do we need more and more "things" in order to be happy, and I use that word very loosely. 

     Many people will never have joy and that is because  they are constantly searching for something.  They think that next new purchase or device will bring them satisfaction and joy.  They go looking for more and more items to bring happiness into their lives.  What they don't realize is that there is an equation for joy, and that equation has nothing to do with worldly things.  

     The best things in life are FREE.  Have you heard that saying?  Well, I agree.  If we would just be content and thankful for what we have, we will have JOY!  Our hearts will be so full of joy that we will have no room for discontentment.  

     Nothing in this world will ever satisfy our souls.  This is not our home.  Things that we buy do not have the ability to fill our lives with a peace that passes all understanding.  Only Jesus Christ can provide that kind of peace.  Only He can give us true joy that can not be taken away under any circumstances.  I want to share a couple of quotes from the dear Corrie Ten Boom.  Even while her faith was being tested and tried, she had the Joy of Jesus way down in her heart.  

  Are you ready to set your eyes on things above and not on things this world has to offer? Are you ready for changes?  Do you know that in order to have true J O Y, you must have these priorities: 

J - Jesus First

      O - Others Second

     Y - Yourself Last

     I am praying for major changes in 2015 in my own life.  I want more of Jesus and less of me. What are you praying for?  I would love to hear what you are wanting for the new year.  

      

Character Quality Cards, FREE FOR YOU!!!

Here are some great character quality cards for you to print. 

Let's Talk Obedience

   

     Obedience.... this is probably one of my favorite character qualities.  It is such an important one to learn.  We really can't teach the rest of the character qualities until this one is taught and understood.  A word related to obedience is submit.  We must understand that we are to do what we are told to do by God without asking questions and without delay,  just as we expect our children to obey without hesitation.

     God has commanded us to obey Him.  In our obedience we are showing Him love and respect.   I am reminded of these verses found in Deuteronomy:

See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse— the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today;  the curse if you disobey the commands of the Lord your God and turn from the way that I command you today by following other gods, which you have not known. ~ Deuteronomy 11:26-28

     We must teach our children to obey.  If they will not obey our voices, how will they learn to obey the voice of the Holy Spirit.  We also need to teach our children God's commandments so they know how they are to obey Him.  They need to know God's ways in order to know what is a sin.  If they follow men blindly and obey them, but do not know God's Word, they may do something that is against God's Word.  

     Children need to know why obedience is so important.  First it is a way to show God how much we love him, as it says in 1 John 5:3 ~In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.  It is also a way to show love and respect for those God has placed over you.  They need to be taught that disobedience can lead to harm physically and spiritually.  Sit down and talk with your children about why they should obey God and why they should obey you as their parents first.  Tell them that God and you only want what is best for them and that is why they need to trust you and obey when you give a command.  Then explain why it is important for them to obey other authority figures in their lives, like their teachers, policemen, and others.  Kids like to ask questions.  Let them ask you questions now, but when it comes time to obey, tell them it is important to obey first and ask questions later.  

     I do have a fun game to help training little ones in obedience.  It is called Red Light, Green Light.  Take a couple sheets of paper, one red and one green and cut them out to look like stop signs.  Write Stop on the red one and Go on the green one.  Have them stand about 20 feet in front of you and tell them to watch the signs as well as listening to your voice command.  When they hear Go and see the go sign, they are to walk towards you, until they hear stop and see the stop sign.  Tell them they are to stop immediately! Keep repeating until one of them make it to you. This is a fun way to start obedience training in your home.