Echoes

You get in return exactly what you put in. This is the law of an Echo. It is not something that is debatable. It is a law that holds true 100% of the time. One can not yell "Hello" from a mountaintop and expect the valley to return with "Goodbye". In the same manner, one can not expect to put nothing but negativity, severity, seriousness, bluntness and demands into their family and expect the fruits of the spirit in return. Charles R. Swindoll wrote in his book "Home, Where Life Makes Up It's Mind" that he read about a teacher who asked a group of students to jot down, in 30 seconds, the names of the people they really disliked. Some of the students could think of only one person during that half minute, Others listed as many as 14. The interesting thing derived from the research was that those who disliked the largest number of people were themselves the most widely disliked.

I pray that the families of the Lord's church will never become like the Pharisees. It was the Pharisees who frequently drew the attention of our Savior for their intimidating and cantankerous attitudes. It was these people, along with the Scribes, of which Christ said You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel! (Mat 23:24) The problem with the Pharisees was not what they preached but rather the attitudes and actions that were behind their teachings. (Matthew 23:3) One simply cannot spend all of their time in any relationship enforcing unattainable demands and expect that relationship to have a lasting and healthy result in the end. Jesus spoke very clearly and directly to the problems in many marriages and many homes when he said: And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount.
But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.
Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.
"Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven;
give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you." (Luke 6:34-38)

One might ask, "How does this lesson on dealing with our enemies apply to our homes?" Sadly to say, some people treat their spouses, parents, and children with the same contempt that the Lord warned against in this passage. How do we identify and overcome this complex? Consistency

Consistency is absolutely necessary in all relationships. Consistency is the only way to expect desired results in a relationship to come to fruition. This works on all levels. When the parent is consistently compassionate, caring, interested, and firm, towards their children, the children will most likely turn out to be at minimum a good citizen who respects God and respects his or her neighbor. When the home relationships are consistently rude, demanding, heartless and firm, the child will most likely to turn out to be rebellious, careless, and rude. This is not to say that there have not been children who were raised properly who haven't found themselves in the grips of the Devil and thankfully those who were not raised in a loving environment come to know the Gospel. It is the very nature of the Gospel that it can change lives. What I am saying is that children who are in consistent home environments, with compassion and discipline, don't usually slip off into the world and, if they do, it is rarely until after they have left the home.

Take notes of the relationships in your lives on all levels. Are they what you want them to be? Are they what God wants them to be? Are you consistent and loving with your children? Are you compassionate and caring towards your spouse? Are you the child that God would desire you to be? Let us all seek to love one another with a more consistent love, more like Christ loved us in that while we were yet sinners, He died for us. It is with that compassion and with that concern that we can save those lost in a dying world and that we can build strong homes which are ready to take on all of the temptations of Satan. Consistency in all our relationships is a noble goal and a difficult goal, but with the help of God, it is obtainable. And once we do obtain this noble goal, it will be great to hear the greatest echo that one could ever hear: "And I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before men, the Son of Man also will acknowledge before the angels of God,
but the one who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. (Luke 12:8-9)"