Out of the Mouths of Babes...

Yesterday I was driving down the road, minding my own business, listening to the radio and out of the clear blue CJ said, "Mama, I don't want to die when I get old." My internal mom siren went off and I thought OK, how am I supposed to respond. Dear Lord, please help me know how to handle this delicate conversation. Finally, after what seemed like an hour of internally processing but in actuality was more like a minute, I calmly say, "well, sweetie, you don't have to worry about that right now. When you get older, I think you will be glad about going to Heaven." CJ, says, "I don't want to go to Heaven...I like it right here on Earth!" I told him Heaven is much better...it is prettier than any place he can imagine, and if he was an old man, then mama and daddy would probably already be in Heaven, and we would all be together again! And, we can meet God and ask Him all of the things that we want to know now, but don't really have the answers to. CJ says, "but I don't want to meet God, He is big and scary." I told him that God wasn't scary, that God loved him, God created him, and that he was God's child. Well, that stopped CJ right in his tracks...he stopped talking...let out a big sigh like he was annoyed and quickly rebutted, "No, I'm not...Jesus is!"

I realized then and there that this could be a long conversation...I prepped myself to get "deep" and said, well, that is true...Jesus is God's son but we are God's children as well. He is our Heavenly Father...then CJ said "OK, OK, I get it..." I knew that this opportunity was over for now...that he had resumed being a normal almost 5 year old and that to push any further would be futile. But, next time, I will be on my toes and ready, ready when he is.

Dear God, thank you for this precious little boy, this inquisitive, thoughtful, full of energy, independent, strong willed little boy who constantly keeps me on my toes. Please help me to always know how to relate to him, and when his heart is open, please give me the words that will speak to him and lead him to you.