Terrorism.

Dictionary.com defines it as “systematic use of intimidation to achieve some goal.”

I never thought of using it to describe my child’s methods, but Chris was using the word correctly (of course!) when he referred to our 17-month-old.

The word could well describe the methods of many mothers, husbands, wives, friends, bosses, children, and …of course foreign radical religious leaders.

The term was first coined in our home when our 4^th child would not stop crying. I have never felt so on the edge of sanity as I did when I was homeschooling an eight-year-old, had a strong willed 5-yr-old, a 20-month old and a newborn who would not stop crying.

“Waaaaaah waaaah.” He would wake in the morning, and the whining/crying noise would begin. (I suppose it wasn’t colic, since he actually did sleep.)  The cacophony continued all day, every day, until he was 17-months-old.  Even while eating, he would usually moan as if his vocal cords didn’t know how to silence.

The noise was so a part of my life that when he was out of earshot, I would still hear the noise in my head. “Wah wah.” I couldn’t tell existent from imaginary.  If I slept, the incessant moaning was incorporated in my dreams. There was a constant state of unrest about me.

When I held him, he would cry; so I figured, “Hey, if you are going to cry in my arms, you can cry over there.”  I would then set him in a play seat or on a blanket. He would cry louder and harder. And so would I.

Chris and I tried to make a joke out of it.

“Do you hear anything?” He would ask.

“Nope, it’s just the beautiful Christmas music.” I would yell over the din with a smile, the  insane kind of smile.

Then it happened. I did something that catered to the baby, and Chris said, “I can’t believe you’re doing that.”

“Well, if I don’t he will just cry,” I justified.

“He’s terrorizing you!”

Wow! “Terrorize?!” strong word!

How many people have I allowed to “terrorize” me? I have

• Appeased by attending something for fear of what would happen if I didn’t. (not because there was joy in my heart about going)
• Given someone undeserved middle ground, sacrificing my family or me to avoid the conflict elsewhere.
• Been silent in the face of evil – for fear of ramifications (terrorizing!)

Familial terrorists are great at guilt-transmutation. I feel bad if I say something that is in disagreement, but I feel equally guilty if I don’t say anything.  “Silence in the face of evil is evil itself,” according to Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

So it comes down to guilt -classification:

• Is the guilt because I feel like I have sinned against God? –correct guilt, needing to be addressed.
• Is the guilt because a human has “made me” feel bad and tried (or succeeded in the case of my crying child) to change my course of action? –incorrect guilt, needing to be dismissed.

Too many times, I have been the one allowing others to “achieve their goal through systematic intimidation of …me.”

Sticking to principles is the only way to break the power of the terrorist.  Improper behavior of others doesn’t change what’s RIGHT. Familial and other terrorists exist for as long as we allow them. They have as much power as we give them.

As in one of my favorite books, Instrument in the Redeemer’s Hands (Tripp):  Aggressively LOVE (even when they are “wah wah-ing”) and humbly stick to Truth.

Girlfriend, let your Light so shine and protect its color to be true!

Terri

Matt 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.