MomStrong: Encouragement for Everyday Moms by Heidi St. JohnExemplo

The Mom in the Mirror

Accomplishing the assignment in today’s verse could keep me busy for the rest of my life. Wow! There are a dozen sermons just waiting to be preached on each of those subjects: evil behavior, deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and unkind speech! More specifically, there could be a dozen sermons on how doing away with deceit will improve your marriage. Or how doing away with hypocrisy will improve your relationship with your children. I can picture a sermon titled “Seven Ways Jealousy Can Shipwreck Your Parenting.” Or maybe one titled “Three Ways Unkind Speech Can Destroy Your Parenting Witness.”

The list might feel overwhelming. Where do you even begin? As with everything, you begin wherever you find yourself. Take a look at the list once more. Which word leaps out at you? For me, it’s the word hypocrisy. Occasionally, I have scolded one of my children about something they were doing wrong, knowing full well I’m guilty of that very thing myself. How much would my parenting score go up if I could be honest with my children in such a moment?

Rather than asking my child, “Why do you always procrastinate and wait till the last minute to do your chores?” I could instead say, “I know how easy it is to wait until the last minute to complete a task. It makes things so much harder. I can sympathize with your tendency to procrastinate. Maybe we can pray for each other, and both get better in the process. Will you pray for me?” Think of how different our conversation would go if I approached the topic with honesty about myself and my own failures rather than being a hypocrite while I lectured my child.

Look over Peter’s list of relationship killers, and choose one to work on today. Your husband may thank you. Or, he may not. Same with your children. But remember, at the end of the day, the blessing that’s found in walking rightly before the Lord cannot be understated. God’s ways build relationships. Try it and see for yourself!