Character

Each day, the Lord presents us with opportunities to exemplify godly character.

By: Tracy Allen, Elementary School Principal

I clearly remember driving down 400 when my young daughter, in a moment of anger, took off her tennis shoe and threw it at my head with full force. Her aim was spot on, and I was not a happy mama. By God’s grace, the next exit was far enough away to give me time to calm down before our roadside chat. My daughter and I now laugh about this moment because she has grown so much in character. Praise the Lord!

In the moment, these detours rarely feel like welcome opportunities to shepherd our child’s heart. In Chapter 10 of Parenting, Paul Tripp reminds us that we must realign our thinking: “God has set every element of these situations up to reveal the hearts of your children to you. He has manufactured this moment to remind you again that the heart of your child is not operating the way He intended. And He has done this because He loves your child, and He wants you to be an instrument of insight, confession, and change in your child’s heart.”

Opportunities for Sanctification

As parents and teachers, we have been given the high calling of recognizing these challenges as opportunities for sanctification. Moreover, what if we faithfully prayed for these very moments? Would it open our eyes and soften our hearts in the most inconvenient situations? In His grace, the Lord uses our heart-level conversations to bring transformation in our children - and often in our weary hearts as well. Our founding headmaster, Bobby Scott, wrote a wonderful booklet called Probing the Hearts of Our Children, available in the Elementary Office. It is an excellent resource for guiding our questions and addressing the character struggles God longs to redeem.

As we ask the Lord to work in our children’s character, will we also ask Him to work in us? Whether they recognize it or not, our children are always watching. They watch how we respond to their sin, and they watch how we respond to our own. They observe our moments of godly character and our moments of weakness. Years ago, my family was driving back from the mountains. My parents were behind us when they suddenly stopped and made a U-turn. Unbeknownst to us, my dad had hit a wooden fence a short distance back. We were on a quiet Carolina country road, and no one was around. He could have easily kept going without anyone noticing. Instead, he left a note in the owner’s mailbox with his phone number and a promise to return. Hours from home, he drove back with his carpentry supplies and repaired the fence. His conviction modeled character to his children and grandchildren that far outlasted the moment.

The Transforming Work of Jesus

Each day, the Lord presents us with opportunities to exemplify godly character and point our children to the transforming work of Jesus. And when we fail - again and again - may we probe our own hearts and model our own desperate need for His grace. Tripp encourages us that “God turns these moments of failure into moments of redemption and asks you to participate in his gracious rescue agenda.” Will we receive these opportunities?

“And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption.”
(1 Corinthians 1:30)