Heavenly Homes are Honest

"…His truth endureth to all generations."

Although we have rarely had TV reception or cable in our twenty-four years of marriage, when my children were younger we watched a lot more movies. It was easy back then to put the children to bed and watch a movie that might not be quite appropriate for them. I am not talking about "adult" movies here, just movies that had adult themes or language. 

    

As our children grew, we found this didn't work so well. If a movie wasn't appropriate for my 12 year old to watch, it probably wasn't appropriate for me either. Wanting to be fair to them, it no longer worked to simply put them to bed, and yet we didn't want to pollute their young minds and spirits with language or behavior that they had not yet been exposed to. As our children grew, it became more and more important to not have a double standard about media and so we came to a point where we rarely watch movies at all, finding few movies worth spending the time on (The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and Mom's Night Out are two recent exceptions).

For our family, truth is very important. Both the truth of God being proclaimed in our home, and honest living between each member of the family. If I as the mother am teaching my children one code of honor and then living a different one, I am not a credible witness. If I tell my children not to have sex outside of marriage, but I put them to bed early so I can watch a romantic movie where that behavior is the norm, I am not really living what I am preaching. I may not be engaging in the behavior myself, but if I am entertained by it, then I am somewhat culpable. If I try to teach them to have decent table manners and then we as a family are entertained by a bunch of vulgarians, I am probably not being a credible witness to civility.

    

Children are very smart. If they hear us telling them to be honest and to trust God, but they see us living  contrary to what we are teaching, they will become hardened to our words. Parenting is the most amazing opportunity for personal growth because our children are so attentive to what message our lives display. I want the message of my life to be excitement about God, excitement about loving the people that He places in my life, and honesty in my relationships. The more we allow the Holy Spirit to sink truth into our spirit, the less attracted we will be to dishonest pleasures. and a peaceful home will be the result of our honest lives.

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