“What are you doing Dad?’” said my six year-old daughter as
she entered the dining room.
“Praying” I replied as I raised my head and opened my eyes.
Tomorrow, Saturday, is a work day for me so I had today off.
It was very cold this morning and the first thing I had to do when I woke up
was to drop my car off to get repaired.
I had planned to drop it off last night, on the way home from work, but
it has been a hectic week and plans had to be changed. A mechanic from the shop gave me a ride back
home.
My daughter and wife were up and getting breakfast together
when I got back so I sat and ate with them and then took care of a few
things. Soon my wife was headed off on
an errand and I sat down by myself, with my Bible and a devotional
reading. A few minutes into my quiet
time with God my daughter came into the room, with her question about my
activity, or perhaps, my seeming inactivity.
One thing a day off means is a change in the ordinary Monday
through Friday routines. The basic
events of weekday mornings for me are run, clean-up and dress for work, pack
lunch, read the Bible and pray, eat breakfast, and then head to work.
Most days those activities happen when I am the only one
awake. My wife usually gets up for her own
quiet time before I leave but our daughter only awakens before I leave for work
on rare occasions. Our little one knows
we pray because we have regular patterns of
praying with her, such as if we are all awake when I go to work, at
mealtimes, and as the last part of her bedtime routine. But I can’t recall another time when she has
seen me home, by myself, with my Bible open and my hands folded.
I suppose I could have had my ire aroused in some way over
her interruption this morning, as I sat in conversation with the Lord God
Almighty. But it is this very same Lord
God Almighty who nearly four years ago very powerfully called my wife and I to
parent this little girl, so I am glad that instead of being riled up He led me
to see the opportunity in the interruption.
All parents watch their children grow and wonder at the
possibilities that lie before their lives.
They wonder what kind of people their children will become as they move
though the early stages of life and set off on their own as adults. On our best days we try to give them good
directions, to set them on a course to learn the right things and to develop
character and integrity.
More than anything else my wife and I desire that our
youngest grow into a godly woman, someone who knows God personally and loves
God deeply within her soul. We want to
nurture within her faith in Jesus as the bedrock of her identity, because we
know from our own experiences that storms will come in life and that Christ
Jesus provides the only solid place to stand.
Proverbs
22:6 says:
“Train
up a child in the way he should go;
even
when he is old he will not depart from it.”
and Ephesians
6:4 says:
“Fathers,
do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and
instruction of the Lord.”
I was glad for the small and unplanned opportunity to teach
my daughter just a little about prayer and the need to be grounded in God. We talked about this morning over dinner this
evening and our daughter seemed to be pretty oblivious to everything I’ve just
written. That’s okay. Raising her is a journey and this morning’s
moment was just one step along the way.
I am thankful for the teaching moment of this morning and
will try to watch for the next one God will provide. The long-term goal is to cultivate and
nurture the faith that God has given her.
And every time He is using me to work on her He is also working on me
too. And that is one more reason for me
to praise God. Amen.
Scripture quotations
are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by
Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission.
All rights reserved.
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