Being Intentional

    “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
   
(Deuteronomy 6:4-9 ESV)

Ah, this command challenges me. I know it's there. I know I should do it but fail miserably at it. The reason is that I trust in myself. Not in God. The great thing about these verses is that when I am constantly doing the aforementioned, I am also constantly teaching myself the gospel. And this what I need. Daily.
God broke me the other day. In a good, merciful, much needed way. My "good" deeds that I do for my family are sucking me of joy because they're exactly that, my deeds. I don't serve my children or husband well because I serve how I think they need to be served and when they don't like how I serve, or interrupt, I get frustrated. Can't they see all my good?! God just spoke to me and said that needed to stop and I needed to serve my family they way they need to be served and stop looking to my agenda. Then I can be free to be interrupted because I am serving them in their way, meeting their needs, pointing them to Christ. (Much different than me yelling to be patient. Now!)
I see the need to be more vigilant about exposing Christ in our family. To try to teach myself the gospel (Good News) and pass that to my children. This week we are working on the fruit of the spirit. I have printed two small books for Abbie and Ellie and printed out game pieces to use as conversation starters at dinner. You could even print out the fruit page with blanks and have your kids write in when they see family members (or friends, strangers, etc) demonstrating these characteristics.  I need to trust in the LORD and when that happens, I won't cease to bear fruit.

Jeremiah 17:7-8 says:
7  f“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,

gwhose trust is the Lord.

8  hHe is like a tree planted by water,

that sends out its roots by the stream,

and does not fear when heat comes,

for its leaves remain green,

and is not anxious in the year of drought,

for it does not cease to bear fruit.”