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Habit Is More Powerful Than Natural Tendencies

 

Charlotte Mason gives us a truth that should make every mother’s heart leap with hope:

“Habit is ten natures.”

In simple words?
Even if a child is naturally lazy, shy, selfish, forgetful, or quick-tempered—habits can change that.
Not just a little—but ten times stronger than their natural tendencies.

✨ What Does That Mean for Mothers?

Imagine this:

  • You have a child who naturally wants to avoid hard things. With the habit of perseverance, he learns to finish what he starts.

  • Another child might be naturally loud or bossy. But over time, with the habit of gentleness and self-control, she becomes a peacemaker.

  • A very shy child learns to speak kindly to others through the habit of hospitality—even if it’s just greeting guests with a smile and “hello.”

👉 That is what Charlotte means when she says habit can “work contrary to nature.”

We don’t have to accept a child’s faults as unchangeable.
Through prayer and consistent practice, habits can help us raise saints.

🎪 Circus Example? What Does That Mean?

Charlotte points out that we pay money to see people do incredible things at the circus—riding horses, doing flips, juggling fire, walking tightropes. None of them were born able to do that. How did they learn?

“Exactly anything may be accomplished by training—that is, the cultivation of persistent habits.”

If a circus clown can train his body to bounce like a ball, surely a child can train:

  • His mind to focus during reading,

  • His heart to think of others,

  • His mouth to speak kindly, or

  • His body to kneel reverently in prayer.

Just like those performers, our children need practice, guidance, repetition—and lots of love.


💞 Encouragement for You, Momma:

This truth—that habit is stronger than nature—is a mercy. You are not at the mercy of your child's moods or temperament. You’re not failing just because your child has weaknesses.

You are their guide. With God’s grace and steady motherly love, you can train those little hearts to virtue.

And don’t forget: You too, Momma, are forming habits. Your daily offering, your patience, your trust in God—these are your rails too. You’re growing in holiness right alongside your children.

🌱 So take heart, dear mother.

Each small effort, each quiet repetition, each whispered prayer over a struggling child—it all matters.

You are not just managing a home or correcting bad behavior.
You are laying down the rails for your children’s future. Rails that lead to Heaven.

You are building a path of virtue, one habit at a time—habits that will guide their feet long after they’ve left your arms.

💪 This is your sacred work.

You may not see the fruit today. You may not feel successful. But God sees. And grace is at work in every act of faithful mothering.

So press on.

Keep shaping hearts with gentleness and resolve.

Keep sowing truth, love, and virtue—even when it feels like hard soil.

And remember: God is the Builder. You are His chosen hands.
When you train your children in holy habits, you are doing His will.

👣 Even on this uneven path, you never walk alone.

Take courage, Mama. Grace is at work. Holiness is forming.

One habit. One child. One day at a time.


Inspired by: LAYING DOWN THE RAILS by Sonya Shafer

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