What I'd Love to Do

I was contemplating tonight, what would I love to do if I weren't currently occupied 24/7 with raising two wonderful little children... I think I've identified my idealish jobs.

1) Become a clothier at a polished women's clothing establishment.

Why? Because I absolutely Love making women feel beautiful. Love it. Adore it. I love seeing beauty and calling it, and I would just be in heaven if I could make women feel beautiful and wonderful about themselves for hours and hours every day.


2) Write an advice column.

I'm smart, and I have good advice for people, and I often look at things from a slightly different angle than others. Plus it would be fun. And sometimes, I could yell at people about how STUPIDLY they are behaving and not ruin any friendships. I think that might be cathartic.


3) Be a counselor or therapist.

I love people, I really, Really love people. I love learning about them, about their interests and their lives and what makes them tick. I love people. I love analyzing the *why*, the motivations behind actions. I love studying personality types, birth order, family histories, religious backgrounds... any and everything that goes into making a person who they are. Things that form a person's character and perspectives. Things that give me a clue as to why people think as they think and do as they do. I love identifying with people, finding a common ground. And I just love love love helping people. Let me poke and prod and study and dig deeper, and then think and ponder and roll things over, and then please please Please let me tell you what I think!!

I don't really know that I ought to be a counselor, because the more life I live and the more I learn, the more my perspectives- and therefore my counsel- change. The more I learn about God, wow, the more my understanding of the world changes. But then, I guess this is what happens with everyone, even psychiatrists... so at the least I would be in educated company :)


That's all. A post about three things I would love to do, and why. The end!

To, not For

I recently heard a sermon where the Pastor made this statement,

"Parent's are responsible to their children, not for their children."

I had never heard the distinction before, though I have considered the implications. I am responsible to my sons, to raise them in grace, with the knowledge of God's grace, with an awareness of sin. I am responsible to my sons, to teach them how to clean their room, to read them books, to show them how to be kind to others, to discipline them when needed, to disciple them. But I am not responsible for my sons. I am not responsible for how they choose to behave as adults, I am not responsible for their walks with God, their standards, or their decisions.

If I fulfill my responsibility to my children, it is enough. If I take responsibility for my children, then my success in life depends on theirs. Then my purpose is to make good people, and if they turn out badly, I have failed. If they make me fail (by making horrible decisions, or getting a tattoo, or doing anything else I don't like), then they become my enemy. Then I must control them, so that I can be successful. Then they answer to me, and I answer to God for them.

Believing that I am responsible for my children (and by extension their success/life choices) is a dangerous thing, and will kill the potential for a truly healthy relationship.