No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Matthew 6: 24
We live in a time in history when culture tries to convince us that we can do it all---but each of us only has one life to invest in what matters. Each of us is limited in the amount of time we can use to invest in the priorities of our lives.
Choices have consequences. What a man sows he will reap--the way one invests time, money, mind, heart and energy will indeed have long term consequences.
Excellence of character must be intentionally developed. Moral foundations take hundreds of hours of teaching and modeling to cultivate. Pouring into the souls of our children, developing sharp minds, protecting them from the draw of culture, passing on faith--these things do not come about by chance. God will hold us responsible for the ways we used our lives to cultivate these attributes in the lives of our children.
I do not think there is one formula in regards to accomplishing these things, and all of us have different pressures, issues, puzzles to figure out in regards to motherhood. But we cannot foster a divided heart within ourselves and be able to truly pass on a legacy of righteousness. Our heart must be devoted to the stewardship of the lives that have been trusted into our hands. We cannot serve the world and God's purposes.
The reality is we can only serve one master and God does not put up with idols or competition to see who will win, in our lives or in the lives of our children or ministry or church. Obedience is simple and straightforward, and not a matter of opinion.
He allows us free rein, the ability to ignore and go against Biblical logic and wisdom, but we will usually be left to live with the consequences of unwise and poor choices.
After all these years of mothering as well as watching other families, I have seen that if children do not find stability, love, training, spiritual reality, purpose, and comfort in their own homes, they will look for them wherever they can find them, and become like the place they spend the most time and the people they spend the most time with, because they are shaped by the culture in which they invest their hearts.
What do your children find, when they look for home in your heart?