One of the questions I was most frequently asked when my children were young and we were homeschooling was this, “What is the hardest part of doing this, of raising your children and homeschool them?” There were many things that were hard, of course, things like discipline, keeping a sane and orderly routine, being on schedule, trying to figure out the best options for our curriculum, planning each week’s work, etc. But without hesitating I would always answer the same thing: The hardest thing is seeing and dealing with my own sins as I raise my children.

Many times I would get mad because of the glass of spilled milk, or lose my patience after one of my kids would not follow he instructions I gave, or raise my voice when we were running late. But you know what? Most of the times I lost my temper not because I really wanted to teach them a good thing, but because of my own desires were not being fulfilled, because I was discontent, or anxious, or simply “tired.” And that was the true battle that I needed to face each day.

Only when I saw this, I was able to deal with it in a biblical way: repent and believe. And only when I started fighting the right battle, I saw the good fruit of righteousness in my own life and my children’s lives!

You have heard many times that piece of advice that many like to give, “Choose your battles wisely.” Well, if you must choose one battle each day, choose it biblically: Kill the sin in you (Rom. 8:10-17). And how do we do this? By the Word of God! (Ephesians 6:10-20)

So, I encourage you, Friend, if you find yourself in a similar situation than the one I was, ask the Lord to give you eyes to see your own heart in the light of the Scriptures. Come to the Word, read it and let the Word read you. If you are struggling with a short temper, with lack of patience and joy, come to the Lord, not only every day, but very minute of the day. Lay it all before Him, humble yourself before Him, take a deep breath and do the next thing by grace through faith. Killing your our sin is about being obedient. It is about repenting of our own sins and moving on -as quickly as possible- back into the path of obedience. This is certainly the hardest thing we’ll face each day, but certainly the fruit is the sweetest of all.

Under His sun and by His grace,

Becky Pliego

Written for Strength & Song by Becky Pliego: wife, mama, and grandma. Find her writings at Daily On My Way to Heaven.