SELF-DISCIPLINE | AdventAI

Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Sep 9, 1880

SELF-DISCIPLINE.

AN intelligent and cultivated woman had a family of young children in whose training she felt a keen sense of responsiblity. She realized how necessary it was that she should set them a good example, yet found that she often failed in patience, that it was difficult for her to control herself and speak gently and tenderly to the little ones when they irritated her. Ashamed of her weakness, knowing that it was a sin which must injure her children, she determined the next time she spoke impatiently to one of them she would punish herself by going without the next meal, breakfast, dinner or supper, whichever it might be, and see if she could not in that way break herself of the habit. She soon had occasion to do so. The children asked "if mother was sick? Why she did not eat any dinner?" "No," she said, "but mother thinks it best to go without to-day." So it passed off for that time; but not long after it occurred again. "Why, ma, do eat some supper. Why don't you eat some supper?" said the little ones, quite concerned and disappointed. Then she thought she would tell them frankly the reason. "Children, your mother spoke crossly to you this afternoon; it is wrong to speak cross to any one; when you do wrong I have to punish you to make you remember not to do so again; but you know I have no mother to punish me to make me remember, so I have to punish myself."

The children all loved their mother very dearly and seemed deeply moved that she had to punish herself, and go without her supper or dinner, for speaking cross to them. A more solemn sense of the sinfulness of all wrong-doing arose in their young minds, since their mother felt that she was obliged to punish herself for doing a wrong act. But then it pained them to think that mother had to be punished; they could not bear to have it so. And from that time it was touching to see how constantly they strove to refrain from doing what would trouble her and make her speak crossly, checking each other by saying in this wise: "Oh, sister, don't do that; you know mother will be tired to-day, and perhaps it will make her go without her supper." Or, "Please don't, Harry; I'm afraid it will trouble mother, and you don't want to have mother punished, you know."