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Key Bible Verse: Be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you (Ephesians 5:32). Bonus Reading: James 3:7–11

Mike, a buddy of mine from Atlanta who oversees a team of magazine editors and is a father of four, says that the press of life is a primary reason for his Jekyl-and-Hyde behavior at home. "By the time I get home from work in the evening, I've already given my best for the day. My best energy, creativity, patience—it's been all but used up by the time I walk through the door of the house. So my family often gets the leftovers, and most of the time that's not enough. I'm not as patient or as enthusiastic. I don't have as much to give. That makes it a lot easier to be short-tempered, even ugly, with my wife and kids."

Add to this the simple pressure of living in a home with other people. There are bills to pay, toilets to clean, laundry to do, homework to attend to, art lessons to drive to, groceries to buy, meals to prepare and clean up after, teeth to brush (224 in our house alone), stories to read—and the list seems to never end. When I'm really feeling the pressures of domestic life—that's when I'm most inclined to lose my cool or, as the theologians would say, reveal my "Adamic nature."

—Glenn Stanton in My Crazy, Imperfect Christian Family

My Response:What changes could I make to help me treat my family members graciously?

Thought to Apply: A severe test of a man's essential nature is how he appears to the members of his own family.—MALDWYN EDWARDS (British preacher)

My Crazy Imperfect Christian Family (NavPress, 2004) by permission. All rights reserved by the copyright holder and/or the publisher.

Copyright © 2008 by the author or Christianity Today International/Men of Integrity magazine. Click here for reprint information on Men of Integrity.

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Prayer for the Week

You've called me, Lord, to the demanding discipleship of family. Empower me to worthily represent you there.

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