Set an example…
in speech, conduct, love, faith…
From 1 Timothy 4:12
While in line at the grocery store, I heard a mom and dad talking. Mom observed, “You know, the kids are always watching. They know what we’re up to. It’s up to us to show them what’s right.” Apparently, something had occurred in the neighborhood which should have been avoided. Dad quickly agreed saying, “Things sure got out of hand and it needs to stop.”
As I listened, I acknowledged to myself that this conversation echoed sentiments my husband and I shared repeatedly throughout our parenting years. As grandparents, we often acknowledge that our grandchildren repeat just about everything they hear. They mimic our actions and our attitudes with frightening accuracy.
Recent news reports indicate that we adults are also at risk of mimicking the worst of what we observe. What is it that convinces shooters to solve their disagreements with guns? What is it that causes young people to forsake their own futures by finding meaning in acts of violence? What is it that urges any of us to prefer power to humble service and to hate rather than to find reason to love one another? As the dad I heard at the grocery store said, whatever it is needs to stop.
I write often that God is with us in everything because I truly believe this is so. Perhaps it’s time to look in God’s direction deep within ourselves and to find something better to bring to our fellow humans, especially the youngest of us humans who watch so intently…
Loving God, you are goodness and you are love. Be with us as we bring both to all whom we meet along the way, especially the children.
©2024 Mary Penich – All Rights Reserved
Mary Penich 
Amen