Mom had knee replacement surgery last week. The next day following the surgery the physical therapist was running her through some of her exercises and was trying to tell her what to expect over the next 24 hours. He said that her leg would begin to wake up and it would be the most trying time with pain and that she’d need to stay ahead of the pain with the meds. Well, Mom was polite and nodded her head signalling that she had heard him and understood what he was saying but after he left she asked me to agree with her in prayer that she would NOT have what he described. She told me that she’d been doing great, thanks to God and all the people praying for her and she was not going to accept his negative report. (So proud of my momma!)

The next day before she was discharged from the hospital, she gladly notified that same physical therapist that she did not have the pain he said she would have. Of course, he said he was happy for her but it wasn’t the norm.

I share all this to say that just because someone else or even a great number of people have a particular experience does not mean that you, or your children, have to have the same experience. Just because research has shown that a child at a certain age is defiant, does not mean that you have to accept your child being defiant.

Now I will admit that know that many children go through a stage where they do not share, can be helpful to you as a parent but that doesn’t mean that you accept it. I would suggest that you use such information as prayer points and to help you train your children.

It is so easy to forget the simplest and most important step to any child rearing situation: Prayer! Actually, it is easy to forget that step for any situation in life. It almost sounds trite but it truly is the most important thing we can do as we go through our life . . . ask God for His help and guidance through each situation.

If Mary Jo is constantly screaming, ask God what to do about it, to lead you to information about how to deal with it, AND to help Mary Jo stop screaming. You see you want to ask for wisdom in each situation but then also to ask for God’s direct intervention in the situation as well . . . look for the “easy” button . . . God helping out is definitely the easy option but you don’t want to be immobile either. Getting His guidance to information that can help is vital. Maybe she is hurting somewhere or maybe she is just being stubborn and wants her own way. There are a great many possible reason for any situation and the best bet is to ask for God’s help in finding a solution as well as His touch in your child’s life.

I hope that this has helped remind you of the simple thing that is super powerful. (Even I have to remind myself to pray about situations, and it is usually one of the first things I tell others to do. )

Until next time, God bless,

Michele ºÜº