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3-year old Girl: 1 Dad: 0

I think way too highly of myself. Despite what the Apostle Paul said about not thinking too much of yourself, apparently I do. This is despite the fact that I have very little power and am in a position of very little respect. Most of the time I am ok with that. After all, I am a youth pastor.

But when I walk through the doors of my home, I expect things to change. For whatever odd reason, I expect blind obedience to my wise council and bold direction.

I'm an idiot.

Last night, I set the children down for bed. Mind you, this had been a good night. The kids played in the water in the back yard, took showers, we ate, and then celebrated life by having cake and ice cream. They should be putty in my hands, I thought. Like I said, I'm an idiot.

'Bedtime', I call out. The 7-year old goes down without a fuss. The 5-year old, though squirmy, goes down. It's just my wife and I and the 3-year old. 'Bedtime', I repeat. The swift reply is 'no'. I told this just-turned-3-year old that she was, in fact, going to bed. She sat down in the living room. Like a recent Wimbledon final, we fought back and forth. I assumed victory would be mine, but it only came after the humble realization that I was not the more determined.

I need to re-read the Apostle's Paul's direction to be humble and consider others better, even if they are packaged in the seemingly innocent form of a 3-year old.

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