I’ve come to realize that my children have been the greatest teachers in my life.
My degrees are in education, so it is only natural for me to teach my three year old to sort her gummy bears by color before she eats them. Or to offer the correct way to hold a paint brush. When we walk up steps we count them. I hold up bath toys and my children will try to guess the color first. And let’s just talk about teaching them manners and obedience for a second. It’s never ending. Right? I feel like I am teaching all day. Whether through my words or actions, my children are learning from me.
But I’m learning from them too.
Several weeks ago, my daughter and I, took a girls trip to Trader Joe’s. It’s a weekly occasion for us. I try to spend time with just her. Having a little brother is hard. Especially a little brother who has special needs. We were waiting on the light to turn green as I was getting off the interstate. We saw a homeless man on the side of the road and she asked me about him. I told her that he didn’t have a home or food and we should pray that he experiences the Father. So we asked God to release heaven into His life, to give him a home, a home in Him. And to give him a home he could live in on earth too. We prayed He would encounter the love of the Father and breakthrough would happen in his heart and life.
As soon as we said, “In Jesus’ name,” Selah, my daughter, said, “Okay, Mommy. God heard us. That man now has a home.”
Tears started rolling down my cheeks, because she prayed in faith, believing the Father would respond. She knew she was a little girl, coming to her Daddy asking Him for His help. And she knew He would come to her rescue.
Jesus told the disciples to come to Him like the little children. Because the Kingdom of heaven was given to such as these. Children are trusting. They are needy. They are full of joy and expectancy. And they are filled with wonder.
It’s been my prayer since this car ride, that I would become more like a child. I would trust the Father’s heart, even if I don’t see evidence of His working. That I would trust Him when my circumstances look immovable. I would trust Him to pay our bills, because my Father owns cattle on a thousand hills. Everything we have belongs to Him. I’ve found myself needing Him for simple things. Like how to respond to a text. Or where to find my keys. I’ve even prayed about patio furniture, for heaven’s sake. But I really need Him for everything. For my very next breath.
I’ve realized I’m just a little girl, with a really Big Dad.
I think all of heaven stops when my little girl, Selah, talks to Jesus. Maybe not because of what she says, but because of her posture before the Father. She boldly approaches the Throne, because she knows she can. But she comes to Him little, knowing He is big. I’m teaching her how to sort by color, and she’s teaching me how to pray. Seems a little backwards to me.
But I’ll keep taking my seat in her classroom, learning how to come to Him like a little child.
Photos by Rachel Ackerman Photography