Today we had a FIRE DRILL!
Unfortunately there are no pictures to post but the children did an awesome job following instructions. It's very important that your children are prepared in case there was a true fire.
In a way it is very similar to being prepared as we work our way to HEAVEN. We may not know the day nor the hour - but as long as we know CHRIST and follow his teachings then of course we will be prepared for the day he calls us home. So taking a FIRE DRILL and relating it to our goal of what we are preparing for makes a lot of sense.
As catechists we teach the faith once a week to your children, but you have them the rest of the week as you LIVE the faith. Let's put this in to perspective. The other day as I was driving with the kids running some errands and I realized why my children snap at each other. I snap at them! I didn't realize it until I really started thinking why do they treat each other this way. I can see that they get a lot from TV, but what about what we teach them at home. We all have heard it before - "actions speak louder than words".
So Kari and I decided that before we snap, we are going to silently say a "HAIL MARY" before we talk to the kids when they are misbehaving. This will give us time to relax so we don't get caught up in the moment. Why a HAIL MARY? Well Mary is one of the greatest examples of how to be a christian - always saying, "YES" to God! Just imagine being in her shoes as you read the story that is told in the New Testament and living her life. Could you do it? I would like to say that we could but we have to be truly connected to our Lord on a daily basis.
So once we as parents have this down we are going to hopefully see a change because our ACTIONS are going to coincide with our words. This is how it should be always, after all we can't call ourselves CHRISTIANS if we aren't Christ-like always. Starting this at home with our family is where it all begins because our home is the first church. So the this is the goal and GOD knows that we aren't perfect. That is why he hears our prayers and our confessions.
Now the hard part is realizing what we have done and how we are going to correct it. This will allow us to get back on the right path. What better way than through prayer? Advent is just around the corner and that is a time for preparation for the coming of our Lord. We don't just be good around Christmas as our children may think, but all year around! GOD BLESS!
