Being an Example

A little boy once said to his mother, “Can I go outside and help Daddy fix the car? I know all the words.” Oops. Lesson to be learned: children are paying attention, even when we do not want them to. Are you paying attention to how you behave around your children? What about other people's children? Or maybe even just other people in general? We are always giving an example -- whether we want to or not.

Think for a bit about the example you give when you go to the grocery store. Are you, in some way, showing that you are one of Christ's servants? When people see you, they may not know that you are baptized, but can they tell that you do not behave the same way the rest of the world does? Consider also what kind of example you give when you are driving. Do you have a stream of people you pass that are angry and upset because you were inconsiderate? Or do some (any?) of them say "thank you, your kindness made my day"?

Of course, we all know that children are even more impressionable. What kind of example do you give when you ignore them? Are you telling them you do not really care? What kind of example is it when you yell at them in anger? Are you showing them that discipline comes when they annoy you (rather than when they have sinned against God?)? The examples are more than I can list here, but they all need to be recognized. We do not need to use words (good or bad ones!) to exemplify something to others. Make sure that you are "saying" the right thing.