{"id":1377,"date":"2011-09-20T01:00:18","date_gmt":"2011-09-20T08:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.doorposts.com\/blog\/?p=1377"},"modified":"2012-01-19T08:32:05","modified_gmt":"2012-01-19T16:32:05","slug":"sharing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.doorposts.com\/blog\/2011\/09\/20\/sharing\/","title":{"rendered":"Sharing"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201c\u2026for\u00a0 God loves a cheerful giver\u201d<\/em> (2 Corinthians 9:7)<\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Mom<\/p>\n

Teaching children to share is one of the big challenges of parenting.<\/strong> Sharing does not come naturally to the old sin nature. We shouldn\u2019t be dismayed, disappointed, or angry when we hear the words, \u201cNo, mine,<\/em>\u201d coming from the mouths of our little ones. Our children are just proving that they inherited their parents’ sinful natures!<\/p>\n

Children need to be gently instructed and trained. <\/strong>They are born self<\/em>-centered; they learn to be others<\/em>-centered. God has given us, with the help of the Holy Spirit, the job of teaching our children to be selfless instead of selfish, and the everyday tussles that arise between children are God-ordained teaching opportunities<\/em>, not annoyances and interruptions, as we are often tempted to think.<\/p>\n

It takes an investment of time, thought, and energy to teach a child to willingly share with a cheerful heart. Most of all, it takes a real, live, loving example in front of them. Are we willing to share with our children?<\/strong> Do we cheerfully give of ourselves, or do our hearts say, \u201cMine!<\/em>\u201d when our little ones want or need our time and attention? Do we communicate a begrudging, selfish attitude when we have to stop again <\/em>to teach our children\u00a0to not have begrudging, selfish attitudes?<\/p>\n

In the midst of all the other demands on one\u2019s time and energy, it\u2019s tempting, when children start to argue over an object, to just do whatever it takes to restore peace <\/strong>and get back to what we were doing. We may:<\/p>\n