One of my hopes and dreams as a parent is to see my children fall in love with Jesus. Sabrena and I have never been overbearing with our children telling them they have to accept Jesus into their hearts or they will be in hell, be separated from us, or any other harsh thing parents may say to “get” their children to accept Jesus. Instead, we have just tried to model His love, not always perfect, and pass on that passion we have for Him. Jeremiah has been asking us a lot of questions about Jesus over the last 7 months. He has always said that he was not ready to ask Jesus into his heart. I wanted him to know that our love for him is not dependent upon whether he accepts Jesus or not.

The other night I was over at a good friend’s house. I received a phone call from Sabrena. Jeremiah had come out of his room and said he was ready to ask Jesus into his heart. Sabrena was blown away since this was so unexpected. I asked her what she said to him. She asked him why. He recalled all the important events and even got teary eyed when describing the cross, but joyful when describing the resurrection.  There was one catch. Jeremiah told her that he wanted to wait until daddy got home. So I hung up the phone and booked it home. What does a parent say to make sure their child understands? How does the parent know when the timing and heart of a child is right?

When I arrived home I got another brief account from Sabrena and then headed to his room. He still wanted to ask Jesus into his heart, so we walked out to the kitchen table. Sabrena, Gracie Beth, Jeremiah, Mojo (our mastiff), and myself were there ready to listen. I opened the Bible to John 3:16. The key to really knowing if a child is ready is to ask a lot of open-ended questions and to have the child explain it. I read him John 3:16 and ask him what each line meant. With great surprise and joy he was able to explain the verse (talked about sin and after the resurrection, he even went on to tell me there would be a new heaven and earth, lol). I sat there overwhelmed with joy and shocked that he could understand it so clearly as a child. I looked at Sabrena, who had tears streaming down her face, and said, “I think he is ready.”

Turning back to him I asked if He really wanted to ask Jesus into his heart. It was his choice. He said yes with this huge smile. He then crawled up on my lap and prayed, asking Jesus into his heart. When he said amen he gave me a joyful hug and then hugged Sabrena. He was so excited! I understand that his faith will continue to grow from concrete to abstract over time, but the innocence of coming to Jesus as a child was overwhelming. Oh, to have that heart and faith each day I am alive!

Our son did something wonderful the very next day. With great joy he walked up to the first kid he saw at school and told them he asked Jesus into his heart. The boy promptly stared at him and said he was weird…the journey begins.

Brad

The other night Sabrena and I were sitting in our house watching T.V. It was a calm and peaceful night. Our kids were in their rooms for bedtime and were actually quiet, so we were savoring the moment. Then ripping into the quiet, my son bolts from his room holding his Halo action figure. The legs had been viciously ripped off of the Halo figure. He places the action figure in my hands, informing me that it was broken. He then asks if I can fix it. I informed him in a sad voice that I could not fix the figure.  Quickly, he runs into his room and brings me another broken piece of the figure.  Handing it to me, he looks at me with those believing eyes and says, “Now”?
Noticing the teaching moment I ask him the looming question.
“Son, were you playing too hard with this toy?”
Sheepishly, his eyes downcast, he replies, “Yes”.
Immediately, His eyes light up and he presents what he believes is the perfect solution.
“You can just buy a new one!”
As I proceed to tell him that he needs to take care of his toys, and that we do not have the money to buy him a new toy. With this new information, he starts to cry. Not the cry that says, “How dare you not get me a toy?” but the cry that says, “I hurt not having this toy.”
He crawls up in my arms and asks me, “Why don’t you have money”?
I gently explain that we are rich. God has blessed us with a wonderful family, house to rent, and food on our table.  We then talk about him doing chores around the house to earn the money to buy another figure.
Why do I tell you this story? I have felt like my son before. As a matter of fact, there have been many times I have felt this way about my relationship with God. God has blessed me with things before that I have broken or ruined. I ask Him to “fix” it only to have the delayed response, “You must work for it,” instead of the immediate fix. Truth be told, there are some things in life that seem to take an eternity to heal. Knowing my halo is broken and crushed and that I have disappointed my Dad, I crawl up into His lap looking for grace and the reassurance that He loves me. I sit there longing for Him to give me some direction. It is then, at my humble state, that he hugs me and gives me His direction. He reassures me that His love is never ending. He hugs me, kisses my head, and reminds me that I am His child. Finally, he puts me back down with a gentle hand and encourages me to learn from my mistake, to gain wisdom from the experience. All of us need that reminder. Come to Him today, crawl up into His lap, ask for forgiveness, and leave your cares with Him. It is then that you will gain clarity and direction in your life.

-Brad