Wisdom From my Mom

Mother's Day is this Sunday, and I thought I would share some wisdom my mom has taught me over the years that I hope to use with my own little boy. Also as a youth pastor's wife who deals with teenagers/kids a lot I see just how important some of her wisdom is when it comes to parenting!
Note: I am in no way trying to tell you I have parenting figured out (because, I really don't have a clue!), nor am I saying I was raised perfectly. These are some things that I feel that my mom got right, and I believe she has done her very best.

Mom First, Friend Second

I am guessing this must be a hard thing to do, but I am so thankful that my mom used this motto with us. So many parents today want to be buddies with their kids instead of dealing with their behavior and being their mom. Because my mom didn't put up with some 'rebellious' actions of mine as a 13 year old, she and I have a great relationship today. She disciplined me then, so we could be friends as adults. I pray I do the same with my little one. I don't want to 'talk down' to him, but I also don't want to allow him to do wrong things because I just don't want to hurt his feelings.

Never Talk Bad About Your Kids in Front of Them

My mom would shake her head every time she heard a mother say things like 'He/She's impossible.' 'I can't wait until school starts again.', 'They just drive me insane!', etc. Mom always said that of course kids are going to act badly if that's all that's expected of them! Not saying you won't have challenging kids (I know I was a bit of one!), but my mom felt that tearing your kids down wasn't the answer, love and discipline was.

Teach Your Kids That Learning About God is a Pleasure, Not a Chore!

To be honest, this is not something I ever remember mom saying out loud, but she instilled in us a love for learning about God. To this day I enjoy discussing scripture and doctrine with people because my mom made Bible study not only a habit, but a joy. We would gather as a family about 3 times a day to either read Proverbs, a chapter we were doing for our Bible curriculum, and then in the evening before we went to bed. We didn't just listen to her read, but we got to take turns, listen to it being read by actors on CD, or sometimes just discuss what we read.

Lead by Example

Sometimes parents come to my husband and I and wonder why their kids are doing things that aren't right, when they themselves aren't living the life they should. You see, I knew that before (or maybe a little after) I got up in the morning my mom had Bible study and prayer. I knew this because we would sometimes catch her in the act. She didn't just expect us to spend time in the Word, she did herself! She was always willing to volunteer at the church, made sure that when we cleaned the church we did it out of love for the Lord not just for people's praise, or for money we made. You could tell she lived this out, because she would always think of extra things she could do to make it cleaner, more organized, etc. She also took on the church's youth even though she isn't being paid a dime.  I clearly saw by example, and I have to say that makes me a bit intimidated thinking that I am going to be under my own child's watchful eyes just as I watched my mom to see if she would 'walk the walk'.

Thank you mom, for being my mom first, and now my friend, for never talking bad about me in front of others, and never making me feel like you didn't want me around. Thank you for helping me develop a love for God, and showing me, not just telling me, when it came to doing things for God. I love you, Mom!

Feel free to comment nuggets of wisdom your own mother shared, or showed you!