The Child Who Is Just Like Me

Last Updated on March 20, 2018

My brother and his family came over for a visit after church on Sunday. It was certainly a blessing to see them all. I was so excited to spend quality time with them, but I was also very happy that my kiddos were going to be able  to spend time with their cousins. They are all close in age, so it makes for lots of fun for them. Well, my almost-2-year-old daughter, Kerissa, decided to show a little bit of her personality, and my brother and sister-in-law were shocked and in disbelief at what they saw.

You see, around guests, Kerissa is typically quiet and reserved. But in her comfort zone, my husband and I are learning that her personality is far from quiet and reserved. She is a little sassy mama!

One day I asked her to pick a toy up from the floor, and with her back turned, she simply rolled her neck and sighed, “Hump!” My husband’s mouth dropped, and I looked at her and said to myself with a neck roll, “I know she didn’t.”

We laughed, but immediately I thought of something my mother told me one day. She said, “One day, you’re going to have a daughter just like you. And then you’ll see what I was talking about.”

I remember that mother-daughter moment so clearly because after she said that, I prayed, “Noooo, Lord, please!” If you sat at the dinner table with my mother and me while she shared funny stories about my little girl and teenage years, you would say, “No, Lord,” too! I was a very strong-willed and determined little girl. I always had an attitude. My voice just had to be heard, and I had to have the last word. Let’s just say I did a lot of writing in my journal (stories and all) because I was on punishment all the time. It’s all I felt I could do to stay out of trouble—that is, until my sister read my journal. But that’s for another post.

When my brother and sister-in-law saw my little princess’s attitude, my brother instantly said, “Kennisha, that is you!” I just shook my head because I know she’s a strong little one just like I was. However, this is why I’m not worried.

My husband and I both have the love and fear of the Lord in our lives, and we are instilling the same in our children. Now, a characteristic is something that can be adjusted. This is what I mean. She may have a little sass to her personality right now, but just imagine that strong-willed little girl using that ability for the Lord! How awesome will it be when she’s speaking the truth of God’s love to many along her path with boldness, without reservation and in such a strong way that her generation of peers will receive it! That’s the way I’ve decided to look at it. God sees all of our potential. His hope is that we will turn to Him and operate in it. It’s the same way we should see our children, too.

Children are small and need guidance, correction, discipline, and, most importantly, love. As her mother, if I continue to feed those things to her, with lots of prayer, my hope is that she will be an awesome leader for the Lord. I’m not at all intimidated by the strong-willed personality I see in her. I know that attitude reflects leadership and I’m praying that God will use that for His glory someday.

If you’re a mother with a child who maybe has a little attitude or seems “troubled,” be encouraged! Know that God has birthed something incredible in his or her life and has given you the ability to help pull it out of them. Kids are moldable. They are just like play-dough. As mothers, let’s continue to let God guide us in His wisdom, so our children can be all God has called them to be.