Taming the Mommy Bear

Last night a passing thought occurred to me that if anyone ever tried to hurt Alexis or take her I'd kill them. Woah! Okay, I am not the kind of person who goes around thinking I will kill people. So I asked myself right then, "Would I really?" I'm not sure what I would do if somebody did something to her. I would have to cling to God to have any kind of a godly response. But it got me thinking, mothers have this innate desire to protect and defend their children at all costs. And this is certainly not altogether a bad thing. It's good to be your child's protection...but what about the times you should let them learn to deal with adversity?

I have a feeling it's going to be a daily challenge to tame the mother bear. I mean, if someone calls Alexis a name at school, what am I going to do, hunt down the little brat that did it and shout them down? What would that teach my daughter? That I'm going to handle all trials? No, I'm going to have to have the presence of mind to teach her how to deal with unkind people who are still made in God's image. I'm going to have to guide her in how to navigate through life with a Christlike heart and with a view towards a world captured by sin.

Does this mean I will never come to her aid? Of course not. There are times where I will need to step in. For example, bullying. It's so prevalent in today's society and children really need adults to save them. I've heard too many stories of adults doing nothing when children are being continually verbally and physically abused. Bullies need to be called into account for their actions and a child isn't the one to do that.

So, I think what I need to pray for is discernment. There will certainly be times I will need to step up and be a bear, but I pray God will show me when to bring out the claws and when to sheath them. God, make a discerning mother sensitive to your leading!