Friday, April 20, 2007

A flashlight on some of my trash

Keeping away from strife is an honor for a man, But any fool will quarrel. Prov. 20:3

Sequoia just brought her little flashlight to me for more batteries. The off button is rarely used by my kids--easier to get more batteries from Dad. It is true in the spirit as well. Sequoia and the rest of the crew never turn off their flashlights when it comes to Dad. Everything I say and do lies under the spotlight.

It's amazing how much strife there is in my house. A simple act of sharing or deference could put out most of the fires in our daily routine. My combative leadership has laid the foundation for my kid's interaction. I can easily color my quarreling with suave design and calculated adult pretense. Children have no such skills and reveal all my weaknesses by repeating my strategies with naked plagiarism.

Some homes may exhibit repressed emotion with darting eyes the only clue to the deeper issues. Not so here. I could use a little repression if for no other reason, to grasp at the honor due a man so disciplined.

"And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect." Rom 12:2

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