A few months ago after reading a Dennis Rainey Book The Tribute, I was convicted to write one for my Dad for Father's Day in which I told him all the things I was thankful for. I did a lot of thinking about what traits he had shown me by example--behaviors I had incorporated into my life because he modeled them in his life. For example, I think one of the reasons I hate to be late is because my Dad was always on time, if not early. I am thankful for that because it is a considerate thing to show up when you are supposed to. This is just one example, but one thing I took away from the whole experience was how much I was a product of my father. What he did and didn't do really did make a difference in who I am today. Of course, I know that God is very gracious and does do miraculous things in the natures of those who are the product of very poor parenting. I have a few friends who I can't believe are the people they are today after having spent some time with their parents. But still, the gravity of how my choices will affect my children compels me to give some soul-searching to what I am feeding them. Am I feeding them more junkfood than fruits and vegetables? So what kind of legacy do you hope to leave your children? What are the most important things we can teach them?
Friday, November 30, 2007
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3 comments:
I couldn't for the life of me tell you where I read this, but somewhere I read, you know, do all the other stuff--feed them vegetables, be consistent, but most importantly...
LOVE EXTRAVAGANTLY.
That's what I hope to do. I fall so short, but it's what I return to when I feel that I'm failing terribly at this parenting thing.
I couldn't agree more. Loving extravagantly is most important. But that begs the question: What does it look like to love extravagantly?
When I think of loving my children extravagantly I think of time spent with them. Time devoted to them. I think that time is a precious commodity that is a great investment when it comes to playing, talking to, talking with, listening to, reading to, walking with, cooking with, laughing with, working with our children....Spending time with them no matter how has to be good food and extravagant love. The times I find myself feeding them junk food is when I have decided I don't have "time" for whatever it is that they need me for. I snap at them out of frustration or sometimes get them to do something less than desirable like watch a movie so I can accomplish something else. I am not saying the TV watching is bad or needing time to do something else is bad. But, I will say that the more time I deliberately spend with my children the better fed they are. They know that they have my undivided attention when I have chosen to put down whatever it is or have set time aside just for them.
Great post Sandy. And Amy thanks for getting me thinking. I'm going to look at my day a whole different way when considering that it is an extravagant love to invest my time and energy in caring for my children and spending time with them.
love you both! -maria
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