Monday, October 5, 2009

"I Forgot"


"I Forgot!" Do your children ever say this? My sweet little Joshua has recently been "forgetting" a lot. He forgets to pick up his shoes, he forgets he is not suppose to lie, he forgets quickly the things which he is asked to apologize for, he forgets all the Hawkins House rules when it is convenient for him. Don't get me wrong he is still very respectful and obeys very well when our eyes are on him and most of the time when we are not with him, but occasionally (since he started kindergarten) he has moments of forgetfulness. I think sometimes he remembers to forget or forgets to remember. I have been known to do that, how about you? Do you ever forget to remember or remember to forget? (Think about that for a moment.) It is easy to obey and do what is right when eyes are on us or when the "right" eyes are on us, but how about when no one is looking? Are we obedient to the WHOLE counsel of God's word at ALL times? I guess the question becomes, why are we obeying? Are we obeying to fit the mold of who others think we are or are we obeying our heavenly Father who loves us, died for us and will one day return to claim His children? What motivates your obedience? If it is motivated by a heart of love and pleasing our heavenly Father, then why do we "forget" to obey Him so much? I explain it to Joshua this way, "When you choose to disobey Mommy, you are choosing to disobey Jesus, because His word says 'Children obey your parents' so not only are you breaking my heart, but you are breaking the heart of Jesus who died on the cross for our sins. When you knowingly disobey and say that you forgot, you are saying that what you wanted to do was more important than what Jesus has asked you to do. You must obey even when no one is watching because Jesus walks with you and He is always watching you."  (Parents promise me that you will never pull out the whole Santa Claus is watching and he will put you on his naughty list so you better be good. There is one who is always watching and knows not only our behavior, but the attitude of our hearts and His approval is so much more important. I want my children to have eternal hearts and minds, not temporal self seeking hearts.) I want to obey and do what is right because I am obeying my precious Jesus, not because I am trying to win the approval of man. I want to remember to remember. I must know His word and know Him so that I will know what He desire of me. How devastating to stand before my heavenly Father oneday and say..."Jesus, thank you for dying for me and thank you for the gift of eternal life, but..."I forgot!"

Colossians 3:22 "Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything, and do it not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord."


John 14:23 "Jesus replied, 'If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching.'"

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