My children bless me because they are an unyielding assault and siege against fortress self.
Their attack has at least 3 dimensions.
For the first, they don’t even have to do anything wrong, they just have to need. I remember a couple of years ago snapping back at one of my girls “Stop asking me for things” only to hear echoed in my head “You, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts.” Not quite making the grade as evil does great things for one’s humility.
In case that doesn’t work, children continue their assault on my sin by using their sin. This clever strategy creates a level playing field, where everyone can behave like a child.
The final blow is delivered when they sin in ways they picked up from me; “How dare you speak to your sister like that!”
The temptation for me in all this is to think that hard equals bad. Instead I need to remember how good it is to have external forces confront my sin and how thankful I am that Christ dealt with sin at the cross.
