Motivation Urgently Needed

      I will never cease to be amazed how God can use His living and active Word to speak fresh motivation into my life, especially on tough days!  

     Do you ever get "those" days?  Days where it feels like the low road beckons to you like a box of sweet chocolates and the high road seems boarded up like an old red barn?  Days where the effort required to deal with the issues at hand is so HUGE that it could make you think of an ant attempting to carry a watermelon? 

     Maybe that is what Albert Einstein was thinking of, when he stated, "One should not pursue goals that are easily achieved.  One must develop an instinct for what one can barely achieve through ones greatest efforts." 

     An instinct for what one can BARELY achieve . . .  many of my days can feel that way!

     So, how did God speak to me on one of "those" days? 

     He revealed a verse from Proverbs 29:15 that says, "A child left to himself disgraces his mother." 

     That may not strike you as enough to change your day around on a dime . . . but it was mine!  What impacted me most was that it spoke to ME -- I'm a mother!  So often the proverbs speak to fathers and they can still apply to us as moms, but look out -- when God is speaking right to mothers, we should have both ears wide open.

     But back to the verse -- isn't that what we naturally WANT to do on difficult days?  Just leave the child to himself or herself?  Absolutely!

     Especially when the day has been long and hard.  But isn't it interesting that the consequence is given to us, not the child?  The verse says it is the mother who will be disgraced. 

     In the very moment I read this verse, I felt called back to God's standard of continuing to press in, as opposed to walking out the world's standard which could be defined as "letting kids be kids" or "don't worry, they'll grow out of it".

     In almost 14 years of parenting five different personalities I have yet to find ONE discipline issue that has magically disappeared because I've ignored it.  In fact, my experience is that molehills become mountains when I leave one of my children to themselves. 

     So moms -- press in!  Would we not rather be found faithful and a little battle weary with our children close to our hearts, than to be well rested and disgraced by them? 

     I love what Sally Clarkson shares on her blog, and I quote:  "Motherhood is a long journey, a hard and challenging journey, that will require much endurance with grace, much forgiveness, much patience and just a whole lot of energy expended."  How true.

     God NEVER tells us to do something that isn't for our very best -- so why question the wisdom found in the Word?  God calls us to correct our children and not leave them to their own demise.  May God's words of truth be your urgently needed motivation to continue on the road less traveled.

"Her children arise and

call her blessed!" 

Proverbs 31:28