Ya know, I really think that I've learned more about life and about how to serve God in the short time that I've been a parent than the rest of my life combined.
It's just something about that responsibility; that little life following you around asking "Mommy, why did that woman just say that? Mommy, why do they not have much money? Mommy, why is that man in a wheelchair? Mommy, when we get to heaven, can we sing songs to God?"
Ethan asks a multitude of questions each day. Most of them only require simple answers, and then occasionally he decides to throw me for a loop. Stump me. I never would have guessed how much God would use my child's innocence to teach me, the parent. Things that I typically overlook, or take for granted, Ethan notices. He notices when a stranger in line at Wal*Mart says something "mean", or when others make comments about not being able to afford something, or when a man loses the use of his own legs. I have to explain these things to him daily.
But you see, this is not God testing Ethan. This is God testing me. This is God's way of asking me "Crystal, how will you show love and compassion for these people in a way that will teach Ethan how to love? How will you express your gratitude for the blessings that I have given you so that Ethan will recognize and be thankful as well? How will you teach your son to follow Me?"
I won't bore you with all my thoughts.... just that it's hard to do. But it's an amazingly rewarding task.
Oh, and then Ethan prays... and I'm sure if any of you have noticed several of mine and Chris' Facebook statuses, you've chuckled a time or two.
Yes, they're cute. Yes, they're often hilarious. But most importantly, they are heart felt. And they are about what is important to him. Tonight's prayer for example:
"Dear God,
Thank you soooo much. Please keep Mommy safe, and Daddy safe, and Seth and Jackie and Jeremy and Seth's Mimi safe. Keep everyone in da world safe. God, please help Hayes and all my friends to have a good day. And God, there's just one more thing I want to ask you: please, I don't want anymore broken arms. I love you so much.
Amen."
Just about every night I have to bite my lip to either keep from laughing, crying, or both.
When Ethan first came to live with us, the only prayer he knew was his goodnight "Now I lay me down to sleep..." prayer. And sometimes he would start praying that prayer at meals, or other times of the day. He didn't understand what prayer was. He didn't understand what it truly meant to talk to God. He only repeated what he had heard at bedtime. Now, I'm not saying that is bad, especially for a young child, but Chris and I knew that it was time for Ethan to start understanding what prayer was. And he was fully capable.
We started telling Ethan more about prayer, and how it wasn't just like a poem or a song, but it was a conversation with God. We started praying more often together as a family. We encouraged him to say a little prayer to God whenever he got frustrated, or when he was in trouble. We explained to him what it meant to ask for forgiveness.
I am so proud now to listen to him, laying in his bed, talking to God about things that really matter to him; like his best friends and broken arms.
"Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 18:4
It's just something about that responsibility; that little life following you around asking "Mommy, why did that woman just say that? Mommy, why do they not have much money? Mommy, why is that man in a wheelchair? Mommy, when we get to heaven, can we sing songs to God?"
Ethan asks a multitude of questions each day. Most of them only require simple answers, and then occasionally he decides to throw me for a loop. Stump me. I never would have guessed how much God would use my child's innocence to teach me, the parent. Things that I typically overlook, or take for granted, Ethan notices. He notices when a stranger in line at Wal*Mart says something "mean", or when others make comments about not being able to afford something, or when a man loses the use of his own legs. I have to explain these things to him daily.
But you see, this is not God testing Ethan. This is God testing me. This is God's way of asking me "Crystal, how will you show love and compassion for these people in a way that will teach Ethan how to love? How will you express your gratitude for the blessings that I have given you so that Ethan will recognize and be thankful as well? How will you teach your son to follow Me?"
I won't bore you with all my thoughts.... just that it's hard to do. But it's an amazingly rewarding task.
Oh, and then Ethan prays... and I'm sure if any of you have noticed several of mine and Chris' Facebook statuses, you've chuckled a time or two.
Yes, they're cute. Yes, they're often hilarious. But most importantly, they are heart felt. And they are about what is important to him. Tonight's prayer for example:
"Dear God,
Thank you soooo much. Please keep Mommy safe, and Daddy safe, and Seth and Jackie and Jeremy and Seth's Mimi safe. Keep everyone in da world safe. God, please help Hayes and all my friends to have a good day. And God, there's just one more thing I want to ask you: please, I don't want anymore broken arms. I love you so much.
Amen."
Just about every night I have to bite my lip to either keep from laughing, crying, or both.
When Ethan first came to live with us, the only prayer he knew was his goodnight "Now I lay me down to sleep..." prayer. And sometimes he would start praying that prayer at meals, or other times of the day. He didn't understand what prayer was. He didn't understand what it truly meant to talk to God. He only repeated what he had heard at bedtime. Now, I'm not saying that is bad, especially for a young child, but Chris and I knew that it was time for Ethan to start understanding what prayer was. And he was fully capable.
We started telling Ethan more about prayer, and how it wasn't just like a poem or a song, but it was a conversation with God. We started praying more often together as a family. We encouraged him to say a little prayer to God whenever he got frustrated, or when he was in trouble. We explained to him what it meant to ask for forgiveness.
I am so proud now to listen to him, laying in his bed, talking to God about things that really matter to him; like his best friends and broken arms.
"Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."
Matthew 18:4
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