A Joyful Heart

What do your blessings do when they get angry?  Here's the latest rundown of responses in anger from my household.

When my 5 year old gets mad, she runs away crying.
When my 3 year old gets mad, he pulls his hair, screams, and sits on the floor usually thrashing his legs around. He will also throw anything that is in his hands or bite and pull on his shirt. Oh yes, and let's not forget that he also walks stiff-legged on his toes when he has been asked to move in obedience while being mad.
When my 1 year old gets mad, he bites you or anything he can sink his teeth in to! He's also been known to throw his precious pacifier on the floor in anger as well as yell at you.

And for all my & Scott's family members reading this you are asking, "And you are surprised?" Yes, two strong-willed, stubborn, hotheaded parents can create the exact same offspring :)

Training is not easy. Training the heart is even harder. A sinful parent doing the training can seem like an unattainable goal. BUT God's mercy is wide & deep EVERY MINUTE. And while God's mercy and grace is what ultimately softens my child's heart, we do have a responsibility to shepherd their heart.

My children know the Fruits of the Spirit by song. I pray the Fruits over them and we are constantly talking about bearing them instead of bad fruit. We will be known by our fruit. If you've yet to hear Paul Tripp's Getting to the Heart of Parenting series, go buy it NOW!

Adeline's Fruit of the Spirit tree.

As we have begun this week we are focusing on:

Proverbs 17:22

A joyful heart is like good medicine.