Proverbs 20:11 - Even a child makes himself known by his acts, by whether his conduct is pure and upright.
It started one morning last spring when my kids were awake before I left for work. The were normally not awake before I left for work since they were both in pre-school at the time. Ages three and four, they did not need to rise terribly early to make it in before their "lessons" started. That morning, my wife brought them out of the house and they just could not let me get in the car without an extensive number of kisses & hugs. But, that was not the part that left me with tears in my eyes half way to work that morning.
As I pulled out of the drive way, they did not cry at all. They watched me ease my car out into the street and even came up to the edge of the road to shout into my car window how much they love me. As I started to ease my car forward and began to accelerate, my son began to cheer me on as I headed down the street, my daughter joining in rather quickly. Dressed in my uniform, my throat started to choke up and tears welled up in my eyes as their cheers, led by my son, rang in my ears. "Go Daddy! Go Daddy! Go Daddy!"
They had no idea what I had to do that day nor what awaited me when I got to the office. They did not care, though. They had all the confidence in the world that I could tackle whatever came my way. And they wanted to make sure I knew that they were sending me off with their blessing. Every time they are awake when I or my wife leaves the house without them, they insist on cheering us down the street, at the end of the driveway until our vehicle turns out of sight at the end of the street, regardless of the temperature or time of day.
You probably think that is awful sweet they do that for their parents, and it is! But, what you may not realize, and we did not either until we had guests over to the house for dinner one night, they insist on doing that for everybody that comes over to the house. I DO mean everybody. Friends of the family, guests, sales people, contractors, service providers, and even the mailman. Each of those people who come to the McQueen house while the kids are home and awake, get treated to two kids cheering them on their way.
The kids are quite indiscriminate in their exhibit. They do not care about a person's background, color, beliefs, or even mood. The kids just want whoever it is to know that they are special and whatever they are heading off to do next, the kids believe in them. And, if the person gets away without being cheered for, the kids will absolutely melt down, most times to the point we might even have to call them back to the house. (Although, I do not think we have gotten to that place yet.)
The lesson in all that came last week when I had him my son in the care, and we were headed out together to go somewhere. He would not let me drive away from the house until he said his goodbyes & blew his kisses to mom. He began to scream and cry, and no matter how I tried to explain that we would only be away for a few minutes... It. Could. Not. Wait! So, I put the car in reverse and began pulling back to the house where his mom and sister were still in the driveway. (Mom has been called back out of the house on previous trips, so she knows better than to go inside too soon.)
What he taught me at that moment was that I should never wait to show my love for somebody, anybody, everybody. Loving people does not have boundaries, to include time. I should never pass up an opportunity to make sure somebody knows how much they mean to me. My kids have started a revolution in my heart, and they do not even realize what they have done. I know I may not do it right all the time. But, watching them, I sure have something to strive for. And, I know that anybody who watches them for even just a short amount of time, will catch the same fire ... a fire to love the world.
Oh, and if you want my kids to cheer for you, feel free to come over for a visit!
John 3:16 (ESV) - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Matthew 18:2-3 (ESV) - And he called a child to himself and set himself before them, and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."
Luke 18:17-18 (ESV) - But Jesus called for them, saying, "Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. "Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all."
It started one morning last spring when my kids were awake before I left for work. The were normally not awake before I left for work since they were both in pre-school at the time. Ages three and four, they did not need to rise terribly early to make it in before their "lessons" started. That morning, my wife brought them out of the house and they just could not let me get in the car without an extensive number of kisses & hugs. But, that was not the part that left me with tears in my eyes half way to work that morning.
As I pulled out of the drive way, they did not cry at all. They watched me ease my car out into the street and even came up to the edge of the road to shout into my car window how much they love me. As I started to ease my car forward and began to accelerate, my son began to cheer me on as I headed down the street, my daughter joining in rather quickly. Dressed in my uniform, my throat started to choke up and tears welled up in my eyes as their cheers, led by my son, rang in my ears. "Go Daddy! Go Daddy! Go Daddy!"
They had no idea what I had to do that day nor what awaited me when I got to the office. They did not care, though. They had all the confidence in the world that I could tackle whatever came my way. And they wanted to make sure I knew that they were sending me off with their blessing. Every time they are awake when I or my wife leaves the house without them, they insist on cheering us down the street, at the end of the driveway until our vehicle turns out of sight at the end of the street, regardless of the temperature or time of day.
You probably think that is awful sweet they do that for their parents, and it is! But, what you may not realize, and we did not either until we had guests over to the house for dinner one night, they insist on doing that for everybody that comes over to the house. I DO mean everybody. Friends of the family, guests, sales people, contractors, service providers, and even the mailman. Each of those people who come to the McQueen house while the kids are home and awake, get treated to two kids cheering them on their way.
The kids are quite indiscriminate in their exhibit. They do not care about a person's background, color, beliefs, or even mood. The kids just want whoever it is to know that they are special and whatever they are heading off to do next, the kids believe in them. And, if the person gets away without being cheered for, the kids will absolutely melt down, most times to the point we might even have to call them back to the house. (Although, I do not think we have gotten to that place yet.)
The lesson in all that came last week when I had him my son in the care, and we were headed out together to go somewhere. He would not let me drive away from the house until he said his goodbyes & blew his kisses to mom. He began to scream and cry, and no matter how I tried to explain that we would only be away for a few minutes... It. Could. Not. Wait! So, I put the car in reverse and began pulling back to the house where his mom and sister were still in the driveway. (Mom has been called back out of the house on previous trips, so she knows better than to go inside too soon.)
What he taught me at that moment was that I should never wait to show my love for somebody, anybody, everybody. Loving people does not have boundaries, to include time. I should never pass up an opportunity to make sure somebody knows how much they mean to me. My kids have started a revolution in my heart, and they do not even realize what they have done. I know I may not do it right all the time. But, watching them, I sure have something to strive for. And, I know that anybody who watches them for even just a short amount of time, will catch the same fire ... a fire to love the world.
Oh, and if you want my kids to cheer for you, feel free to come over for a visit!
John 3:16 (ESV) - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Matthew 18:2-3 (ESV) - And he called a child to himself and set himself before them, and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."
Luke 18:17-18 (ESV) - But Jesus called for them, saying, "Permit the children to come to Me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these. "Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all."
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