THE CONSISTENT PARENT TEACHES

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. - 2 Corinthians 2:9


Who wants to be perfect? Not me, but in my home (and I'm sure like yours) I have a son who believes he is. He allows no room for grace when he messes up. Piano lessons are a chore. Baseball practice is useless. Why? Because that would require admitting he doesn't know it all. My heart breaks for him as I hear the exasperated moans and grunts after hitting a G7 chord and it sounds more like a cat caught in a wine press. First year of little league found him proud of his place on an undefeated team. Year three. Well, let's just say he was ready to quit half way through the season as they loss game after game. For him, not being perfect is not an option. He becomes his own worst critic and imperfection is a sign of self-critical weakness.


As concerned parents, we are left with only one solution - consistency. When we hear the frustration behind the "I can't do this!," we have to remind our children time and time again in loving ways that they aren't perfect. We don't allow them to give up. We teach them how to press forward. They may not get things right the first, second, third or 20th time around, but life is full of wonderful lessons surrounding our imperfections and weaknesses.


What a beautiful picture of God's lessons for us. We all fall short, but we don't stay down for long. We will never be perfect, but we will always have a Father who forgives our sins and cleanses us from all things that aren't right. I believe that's why Paul found great boast in his weaknesses. He knew that in weakness we are made strong. And like we do with our children, we may have to hear the lesson over and over again. But thank God, our Heavenly Father is a very consistent parent!