"Angie...your Grandpa is getting older and I know you built your foundation on him, but you have to remember your foundation is built on Christ and I don't want your foundation to crumble if anything happens to him."
I couldn't help but think of those words again today. They were true words spoken by a dear friend. I thought a lot about all the things my Grandpa has taught me though out the years and wondered if I had learned the lessons he taught me and in return taught them to my children. What was the lesson my Grandpa taught me....
To Love.
I taught my children that they should obey. That Mom and Dad were always right and should not be questioned because they were just kids and didn't know what was best for them. I disciplined like a good parent should and I broke that rebellious spirit to make sure that they were well behaved in public and respectful around others and they learned that lesson well and they are amazingly respectful...but did I teach them love?
I taught my children that they should go to church, that they should have a relationship with Christ and that they should make it a point to pray for others and they watched as we took them every Wednesday and Sunday. They also watched us try to clumsily walk this Christian life out and we tried to follow all the rules. My children do have a solid relationship with Christ. They are not living for the world...but did I teach them love?
I taught my children the worth of a dollar. How we needed to work hard, that we are not to live off of the system or other people unless our lives are in danger. How we are not to be a burden on others and that if we are capable and able, we need to continue to work hard, not spend money foolishly and mind our own business. They watched as time after time I rejected their requests to play catch or go to the lake, or do fun things because I was too busy keeping an eye on the dollar. All this to get out of our own massive debt that we created before we learned this lesson ourselves. I taught them the value of money.... but did I teach them love?
A few years ago, it was a realization that many things in life that I had invested in did not compare to "time". We sit behind our computer screens, we stress and worry about our clothes, our friends, our bills, our names, our jobs, or homes, our hobbies, our cars, our issues and worries, our sickness and our weight. I listened carefully as not only myself but my friends vented frustrations about things such as rules, government, germs, church, friends, kids, spouses, money, jobs, and Facebook. The more I listened the more I thought about "time"....and does any of these things teach us to love?
Whenever I start to think about all the lessons I could be learning in life and all the things I could be better at, all the things I haven't done or said, all my imperfections all the things that bring me down like the weight I haven't lost, the wrinkles on my skin, the attribute I haven't attained, the toy the kid left on the floor, the dish in the sink....I think ......
if "TIME" were to end tomorrow....did I teach them to love?
John 13:34-35
34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
I couldn't help but think of those words again today. They were true words spoken by a dear friend. I thought a lot about all the things my Grandpa has taught me though out the years and wondered if I had learned the lessons he taught me and in return taught them to my children. What was the lesson my Grandpa taught me....
To Love.
I taught my children that they should obey. That Mom and Dad were always right and should not be questioned because they were just kids and didn't know what was best for them. I disciplined like a good parent should and I broke that rebellious spirit to make sure that they were well behaved in public and respectful around others and they learned that lesson well and they are amazingly respectful...but did I teach them love?
I taught my children that they should go to church, that they should have a relationship with Christ and that they should make it a point to pray for others and they watched as we took them every Wednesday and Sunday. They also watched us try to clumsily walk this Christian life out and we tried to follow all the rules. My children do have a solid relationship with Christ. They are not living for the world...but did I teach them love?
I taught my children the worth of a dollar. How we needed to work hard, that we are not to live off of the system or other people unless our lives are in danger. How we are not to be a burden on others and that if we are capable and able, we need to continue to work hard, not spend money foolishly and mind our own business. They watched as time after time I rejected their requests to play catch or go to the lake, or do fun things because I was too busy keeping an eye on the dollar. All this to get out of our own massive debt that we created before we learned this lesson ourselves. I taught them the value of money.... but did I teach them love?
A few years ago, it was a realization that many things in life that I had invested in did not compare to "time". We sit behind our computer screens, we stress and worry about our clothes, our friends, our bills, our names, our jobs, or homes, our hobbies, our cars, our issues and worries, our sickness and our weight. I listened carefully as not only myself but my friends vented frustrations about things such as rules, government, germs, church, friends, kids, spouses, money, jobs, and Facebook. The more I listened the more I thought about "time"....and does any of these things teach us to love?
Whenever I start to think about all the lessons I could be learning in life and all the things I could be better at, all the things I haven't done or said, all my imperfections all the things that bring me down like the weight I haven't lost, the wrinkles on my skin, the attribute I haven't attained, the toy the kid left on the floor, the dish in the sink....I think ......
if "TIME" were to end tomorrow....did I teach them to love?
John 13:34-35
34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
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