One day I was at my job as a preschool teacher. A child came up to me, let's call him Bob, and said another child, let's call him Dan, yelled in his face. I asked Bob, "how did that make you feel?" No sooner did I ask that then Dan started crying and walked over to my co-worker, let's call her Amy, and said Bob had yelled in his face.
I looked at my co-worker and said, "You ready?" She nodded. I walked up to her and yelled, "Amy!" She said, "ow, that hurts my ears when you do that. Please do not do that." I said, "I am sorry, I did not realize that hurt your ears I will not do it again." Meanwhile, the students were watching this whole exchange just stared at us after we finished. I said, "now you go."
Bob walked up to Dan and yelled, "Dan!" Amy and I began laughing. Bob had done what we asked. He copied us exactly as we had done it.
This situation is a great example of how much children learn from us. They watch us to learn how to talk, solve problems, care about others, tie their shoes, and much more. Many times though we are not the best examples.
Ephesians 6:4 says "Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord." There are times when life gets away from us. We get stressed and busy. That's when we forget that we have a responsibility.
We are called to bring children up in discipline. That doesn't mean yelling at them. It means showing them how they should act. It means we are to emulate Christ in all we do. That is not always easy but it is what we are called to do. We shape the future each time we interact with children. What kind of future do you want to see?
How do you act when children are near? Are you being a good role model to others? How can you bring up the next generation of children in a Christian way?
Image from here.
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