Example:
When she finishes her meals after lunch or dinner, I will sometimes give her dessert. She can pick a cookie or a fun pack of M&Ms, etc. She doesn’t get dessert until she finishes everything on her plate. Lately she’s been doing really well. At dinner the other night, she finished her meal very quickly and proudly showed off her empty plate. “Now I get a treat, Mama, because I ate ALL my food!”
In a brief moment of mama’s intuition, I realized that she could not have eaten it all that quickly. Especially the zucchini/squash stir-fry that she usually takes longer to eat… So I asked her where the zucchini was. She hung her head, stood up from her chair, and lifted the dining room chair cover. Underneath was some fresh zucchini along with a variety of food from other meals over the past few days that she had hidden. I asked her if there was food anywhere else. She walked over to our low coffee table, got on her hands and knees, and pulled out a muffin from last Tuesday as well as some green beans and pieces of cheese.
It’s truly a miracle that we haven’t seen any R.O.U.S.’s. (Rodents Of Unusual Size…name that movie!). Nor have we smelled anything, which is even more surprising.
Needless to say, I had a great opportunity to teach her about what God thinks of lying. Since then, she’s done it two more times. On both occasions, I took the time to discipline her and teach her about honesty and trust. My very wise friend Joy pointed out that she’s getting old enough to begin to comprehend her sinful nature and learn about why she needs a Savior.
You know, we really shouldn’t be surprised when our kids lie. Frankly, I’m surprised that we haven’t dealt in depth with this issue until now. Since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, when sin entered the world, our human nature is completely self-centered. That’s why we have to teach kids to love others, to share, to obey, to be respectful…it doesn’t come naturally.
I think it’s important to not gloss over or chuckle when our kids do something like hide food in order to get dessert. Teaching them when they are young about lying shows them that sin is serious. It’s not “cute”, nor is it simply a developmental milestone. It’s so serious that God had to send His only Son to die a blameless death on the cross in order to save us from our sin.
My deepest desire, what I pray for most, is that one day Grace will realize her need for a Savior, accept God’s precious gift of salvation, and live a life of service to Him.
In the meantime, I’ll just keep hoping I don’t run across any more hidden decomposing vegetables around my house.
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3 comments:
Princess Bride!
Speaking of PB, have you seen Stardust? It's the Princess Bride of our time--a must see!
Bradford has started doing this too--usually he'll tell me he's "done" with something, and I'll say, are you sure? He'll pause and then say "No, I'm not. I forgot!" Uh-huh.
We had that issue with one of ours. She now is a wonderfully truthful person. Each one is born with weaknesses. I know you will be an instrument of sanctification in Grace's life.
I think you're doing absolutely the right thing... it's parents that don't pay attention to teachable moments that end up with kids that have problems get bigger and bigger. If it goes ignored and you don't use the opportunity to teach her... you've missed your opportunity to be a Godly parent. If that makes any sense...
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