There Once Was A Day

There once was a day I attempted to implement change.  It did not go so well.

Long Story Short and my Bible in hand, I gathered everyone in the living room.  We were going to meet each night and do a devotional together.

Eyes were rolled.  Voices raised.  Emi flailed about like a limp noodle, screaming and wiggling to get down, only to cry to get back up.  Eli left the room to go play then complained when asked to return.

It seemed pointless.

I trudged through.

It said to ask them "Who taught you to disobey?".

Simple enough question I thought.

But then something shocked me.  They both pointed at me.

I was confused but their follow up remarks were not.

"You get mad and raise your voice, so then I do it."

"You say bad words so then I want to."

You know, bad words like "Well poo" and "Crap" and "Stupid".

But alas, apparently they feel I am to blame for their sin nature.

I redirected them by asking them to name some ways they sin.

"By lying."

"Did I teach you to do that?"

"Umm, well no."

What are some other ways you sin?

"By being mean to my sister."

"Did I teach you to do that?"

"No."

Hmm, okay.  Anything else?

"When I have a bad attitude because I don't want to do what you asked me to do."

"Did I teach you that?"

"No."

Then who taught you how to sin?

"No one."

It's always easier to blame someone else, isn't it?  Isn't that exactly what Adam and Eve did after the first sin?  "Well, Eve made me do it."  "Well, the snake tricked me."

It'd be easy for me to blame someone for them following in my steps - but the reality is that that little nugget falls right in my lap.  It appeared that nightly devotions wasn't the only change needing to be implemented...

Following this, I attempted to start part 2 of the change - reading each night together as a family.  I had a Magic Tree House book in hand, ready to lead us on an adventure.

Complaining ensued.  "I hate Magic Tree House books."  "Why do we have to read?"  Can't I just have some me time?"  "This is so dumb."

I wish I could say I was still optimistic.  I wasn't.

We were 2 pages in and I gave up.

There once was a day I tried to implement change.

It did not go so well.

Feeling defeated, I began to see this for what it really was.

Granted - It seemed like another thing I had failed at as a parent.  It seemed like it was pointless to even try.

But then, I heard it.  It was loud and clear.

Keep Trying.  Nothing good comes without opposition.

Opposition.  Yes.  That's exactly what that was.  Why would Satan want us to do nightly devotions as a family?  Or spend time together, gathered around, listening and going on adventures together?  He wouldn't.  And so I would have to fight harder.

Later that evening, we gathered back in the living room, Anna crawled up in my lap, Eli snuggled up on the loveseat and we began reading.  They were quiet.  And as I closed the book they said "Read another one."

There once was a day I tried to implement change.

It did not go so well, but we tried anyway and it was great.