...There’s this excitement in the both of us, as we travel to pick up the boys for a sleepover. My mind starts to wonder what kind of visit are we going to have? Grandma has her list of activities planned… walks to the park, making play dough, coloring, story reading, and not to forget watching Thomas the Train. Papa always likes to drive to the log yard where they make log homes. It’s just what Papa does. Somewhere along the way we forgot you don’t really need a list of activities to keep a one and three year old boy busy. They seem to manage just fine all by themselves. Do these little ones do things on purpose, or are they just trying to get a reaction? “So tell me, what is that white powder on the top of your head, and down the front of your face?” as I stand at the bottom of the stairs looking up at one of the grandchildren. The playfulness of a child, or the stupidity, I’m not sure. Anyway, no harm done. In the background I can hear a voice, “Come And Find Me” as we shift to a game of hide and seek. We search for Auntie Jenny. “I’m down here,” a voice cries out from under a play pen concealing her. Smiles, laughter and young children, welcome memories of when we played games with our own children. Bedtime… let’s just say someone got to sleep in a tent that wasn’t outside. So it’s off to Church. Everyone’s buckled in their car seat, all two grandchildren, seems like more. From the voice of a three year old, Papa’s been given the buckling procedure, and safety instruction of the child car seat. We sometimes think that our actions don’t matter, or our words aren’t heard. Don’t fool yourself. I listened, as my grandson asked why at a certain point in the service, when everyone was clapping, someone he knew wasn’t. Someone is always watching and learning from us. It’s been said that all our children and grandchildren want from us is quality time. Parents also want the same thing from their children. God is no different. He doesn’t want quantity time, He wants quality time. This thought became real to me on the ride home from church. My son was sitting in the front seat beside me, as I tried to talk to him. I could see by his facial expression that he had no clue of what I had just said. That’s when I noticed the little white headphones coming out of his ears. That’s when I noticed the conversation was one-sided. So I wonder what blocks people’s heart and Spirit from hearing God. Little ones take in everything we teach them, I want to say curiosity, but it’s much more that that. It’s almost a trust, a faith like belief, that what we are teaching them is true. And they aren’t wearing headphones. So why did God create grandchildren? Was it to show us how fast life goes by? Or was it to show and remind us to have the curiosity of a child, a faith like curiosity. Grandchildren remind us how it was to be young. They will also teach you to have a faith like a child again. There are circumstances that want to block your Spirit, that part of you that wants to connect to God’s Spirit, when all we need to do is listen. The older I get, the more I should be able to hear God’s voice. This weekend reminded me of that, and this Papa is thankful to two young boys who helped show him how to listen. ‘Papa needs a nap.’
Isaiah 7:14
14 All right then, the Lord himself will choose the sign. Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son and will call him Immanuel -- 'God is with us.'
LOG-ON
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