I find I learn some of the best lessons from my children. There is such an honesty with kids that we often lose, or don’t admit to as we get older. I think we tend to complicate things as life goes on, and I have found that children find black and white much easier to see at times. Sometimes the honesty hurts- “Mommy, you must be about to have that baby real soon- ’cause your belly is BIG!” We were further from having that baby than I’d like to admit right now, but let’s just say we weren’t as close as my sweet child thought 😉 I have learned to laugh about those honest comments- and thankfully for the most part they have been more on the uplifting side!
I have been taken aback by so many things that they have observed and pointed out. Most of all, I have been touched and refreshed by their enthusiasm and love for Jesus! I have to admit, the first time I heard one of them exclaim, “I can’t wait to be with Jesus!”, I had to stop myself from thinking in earthly terms. Of course, I want us to be with Jesus, but I don’t want to think about my kids dying. But wait, isn’t being with Jesus what it’s all about? Of course, we need to live our lives here with purpose the way He intends for us, and we certainly don’t want to hasten our arrival in Heaven- but isn’t that -being with Jesus- the ultimate goal? It’s so easy to get caught up in our daily lives here on Earth, and forget that what it’s really about is eternity in Heaven with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! We need to be sharing that goal with others, instead of avoiding contact with those who need Him so badly and focusing on the next thing on our to do list.
My nephew, Noah, wrote a cool post on their blog about asking the right questions- the “Why” questions, and I agree with him that kids are great at that! Our five year old, Chase, is still busy asking lots of questions! I have to admit, the questions can be exhausting at times, but I know they are good for him! He will not give up until he gets a solid answer, and because of that we have learned some cool stuff! Try Googling a video on how glass is made or asking Siri how things glow in the dark 🙂
One of my favorite questions, though, that he asks repeatedly has challenged me to ask the same of myself- “Am I making Jesus happy?” Or sometimes it is followed with a second question- “Am I making Jesus happy and the devil sad?” I love that making Jesus happy has become the primary motivation for his actions! I love that he wants to please Jesus! And while we try to keep Jesus our primary focus, and not to dwell too much on the devil- the question really puts things in perspective. We really are either pleasing one or the other. So, instead of getting all complicated about my actions,- worrying what others may think, or what I should do- I’m taking a lesson from my five year old and trying to boil it down to what really matters- “Am I making Jesus happy?” If the answer is “yes”- don’t let anyone stop you!
Wonderful insight!
Thanks, Mom! 🙂