Matthew 2

2:16 "Then Herod, when he saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, became furious, and he sent and killed all the male children in Bethlehem and in all that region who were two years old or under..."

The reason this caught my eye was that I found it interesting that this "ruler" of Israel had just ordered the same heinous act of Israel's most notorious oppressor, the Pharaoh of Egypt from Exodus 1. Granted, Herod was an evil and depraved impostor (so expectations were pretty low), but it's still quite ironic that God's people fled this kind of horror only to have it now come on them again.

I was thinking about if I have ever been blinded by my own ambition only to become that which I despise. One thing that I know I struggle with is my attitude towards parenting. Sometimes I get so focused on teaching conformity to rules that I forget that parenting is about cultivating hearts towards Christ. When you lose sight of that, voices get louder, tempers flare, and learning is replaced with bitterness. I won't compare myself to Herod, but there's a warning here to watch what you are striving for. Herod had an opportunity to fulfill his charge as a leader and protector by presenting Christ to the nation as their true salvation and deliverance. It's pretty obvious... he blew it.

Lord, help me to make my desires conform to Yours. Help me to shepherd my kid's hearts towards You. Please draw my family closer to You.