/**/ The Purposeful Wife: One Word for 2016

Friday, January 1, 2016

One Word for 2016


"She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue." 
{Proverbs 31:26}

This quality of the Proverbs 31 woman is currently the one that pierces me with the most painful conviction. For a long time it was the following, verse 27- "She looks well to the ways of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness." Laziness is one of those pet sins that I think I will be fighting until I die.

But since my children have multiplied, and sleep is less consistent and chaos more so, my temper has flared up and my tongue gets out of control. I hate the way I sound when scolding my kids, and they aren't big fans of it either.

Plus it sounds 8 million times worse when the same tone of voice comes out of my four year old daughter scolding her two year old brother. It is what she is hearing from me, and it is ugly.

I desperately need to learn the "teaching of kindness."

This year I am committing to praying over and working towards this particular fruit of the Spirit. I don't want to be THAT mom- the cranky, grumpy one who lashes out at her kids with harsh and unkind words.

I recently read Carolyn Mahaney's Feminine Appeal, and the impression that has stayed longest with me since finishing is Carolyn's warm accolades for her mother. The mother who was always kind, always joyful, so much so that her children were surprised at the many sacrifices required by parenting when they grew up and had their own children. She had never let onto the difficulties.  She had never played the martyr.

I want to be that mom. And I am so achingly far from it.

To help keep me accountable, and to encourage my progress, I intend to {Lord willing} write one post each month centered on this theme. I plan to memorize and meditate on relevant Scriptures, find visual reminders I can wear or post around my home, and pray a lot.

Want to join me?

If lack of kindness has been a point of struggle for you, I'd love to know how you combat it.


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