Read or listen. It’s up to you!
Sometimes we aren’t aware of our language choices until we hear our kids repeating them. It took me awhile to figure out why our youngest child thought our van was named “Buckle”. Then I remember every time we get in the car I say over and over “buckle buckle buckle buckle” while buckling him into his carseat and reminding his siblings to do the same.
And just the other day I told my three year-old she needed to clean her room. She said to me, “I NOT clean my room.” I told her, “You can put the blankets back on your bed, so start with that.” When I closed the door I heard her muttering, “STINK STINK STINK STINK!” In this family that’s about as close as it comes to cursing and I know exactly who she learned it from.
Photo by Rebecca Tredway Photography
Motherhood has taught me to be so careful about my words. We read in James that the tongue is a restless evil and there are many parenting moments where I have to fight that restlessness. My words can build up my children or they can tear them down. And whatever words I say in the privacy of my home are words my kids are likely to repeat at Grandma’s house or at the playground or at Children’s Church. May they hear words from me that honor God, that show respect for others and that encourage their hearts.
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