Beware
The consequences of sin must be taught too. One morning's family devotions had been on the verse, "Be sure your sin will find you out." (Numbers 32:23b)
Because of the following incident, I learned the verse as "BEWARE your sins will find you out"! Just after devotions I had stolen a few pennies and hidden them under my pillow...no one would think to look there, I thought. Mommy happened to come into the room, happened to plop down on my bed, and happened to lift the pillow and place it on her lap (she'd never done that before!)
"What's this money?"
"It's...uh...it's...." My sin had found me out!
The money was stolen, Mommy learned. And thievery could not be tolerated. Mommy turned and walked out of the room...toward the telephone!
"What are you going to do?"
"I'm calling the police. We can't have robbers in this house." She replied, cooly.
No! No! She can't do that!
My older sister grabbed Mommy around the waist from the back and tried to back her away from the phone. "Oh Mommy, she won't do it again, I promise! She won't ever steal again! Please don't call the police!" But Mommy was unrelenting. It seemed my sister was being dragged to the phone herself. Soon my other sister grabbed her sister around the waist and commenced pulling. And I formed the last link of the chain, tugging at my sister in front of me. All three of us were crying and begging Mommy not to make the call. "I'll never steal again!"
If Mommy were laughing on the inside at that comical scene, I'll never know. She looked dead serious as she picked up the receiver.
"You promise you'll never do it again?"
"I promise!"
Mommy put down the receiver. Click. Whew!
And I never had the urge to steal again. Once when my younger sister was counting her money, a quarter rolled off the counter. It would've been the easiest thing for me to take that quarter and pocket it; she'd just been counting her money and would never notice it gone. But....
"Beware your sin will find you out," came an echo in my mind.
"Here, you lost a quarter." I found myself picking up the coin and placing it next to her neatly formed pile." It just fell off the table."
Because of Mommy's act, I'd lost appetite for--rather, gained a fear for--sin. Drama classes are not prerequisites for motherhood, but if they were, I think Mommy would've been a Natural!
Because of the following incident, I learned the verse as "BEWARE your sins will find you out"! Just after devotions I had stolen a few pennies and hidden them under my pillow...no one would think to look there, I thought. Mommy happened to come into the room, happened to plop down on my bed, and happened to lift the pillow and place it on her lap (she'd never done that before!)
"What's this money?"
"It's...uh...it's...." My sin had found me out!
The money was stolen, Mommy learned. And thievery could not be tolerated. Mommy turned and walked out of the room...toward the telephone!
"What are you going to do?"
"I'm calling the police. We can't have robbers in this house." She replied, cooly.
No! No! She can't do that!
My older sister grabbed Mommy around the waist from the back and tried to back her away from the phone. "Oh Mommy, she won't do it again, I promise! She won't ever steal again! Please don't call the police!" But Mommy was unrelenting. It seemed my sister was being dragged to the phone herself. Soon my other sister grabbed her sister around the waist and commenced pulling. And I formed the last link of the chain, tugging at my sister in front of me. All three of us were crying and begging Mommy not to make the call. "I'll never steal again!"
If Mommy were laughing on the inside at that comical scene, I'll never know. She looked dead serious as she picked up the receiver.
"You promise you'll never do it again?"
"I promise!"
Mommy put down the receiver. Click. Whew!
And I never had the urge to steal again. Once when my younger sister was counting her money, a quarter rolled off the counter. It would've been the easiest thing for me to take that quarter and pocket it; she'd just been counting her money and would never notice it gone. But....
"Beware your sin will find you out," came an echo in my mind.
"Here, you lost a quarter." I found myself picking up the coin and placing it next to her neatly formed pile." It just fell off the table."
Because of Mommy's act, I'd lost appetite for--rather, gained a fear for--sin. Drama classes are not prerequisites for motherhood, but if they were, I think Mommy would've been a Natural!
Labels: Family on the Field, Learning from Mommy
posted by Life in Koriyama @ 11:31 PM
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