I've been thinking...

I've been thinking of how much we truly teach our children. Of how much we mold their thinking during their early childhood. They learn to hate the things we hate, and love the things we love. They find pleasure in the things we find pleasure in; they despise the activities we despise. They fear the things we fear. As they grow older they start to form their own true opinions and and preferences, but when they are small, ours are theirs.
It is my choice - my privilege - my responsibility. God will hold me accountable for how I have taught them. Am I passing on a love for things they should love? A hate for things they should hate? Finding pleasure in things that they should find pleasure in, or perhaps in things they should not? Am I teaching them to fear things that they ought not fear? To love "things" that they should not love?
And I am brought to think all of these things because of my six year old, who came to me with a beaming smile and her hand outstretched, saying "Mommy, look!". Crawling across her palm was a maggot. I responded abruptly, expressing horrid disgust, and she promptly dropped it on the carpet, a sudden look of fear on her face. I CAUSED THAT. It was not the maggot, because she simply thought it was some sort of small caterpillar. I was the one that changed her look from pleasure to fear. I have probably forever changed her view of maggots, all because of my response. That is a lot of responsibility. How many times throughout a day do I do that? How often am I shaping them by expressing my views on a subject? By expressing God's views on a subject? By reacting in fear to something I should not? There really wasn't anything to fear in that maggot, but I made her fearful. I could have calmly told her it was a baby fly and to throw it out, but instead I acted on my own fears brought on by experiences with maggots (that I will refrain from sharing here), and passed on to her a disgust that was unwarranted.
Lord, please help me to always notice these opportunities, and to take them and use them for Your honor and glory. Please help me to give my children a love for You and a hatred for sin. Thank you for helping me to see how I so easily impress my children, and help me to use that influence for good and not evil all the days of our lives.