The First Thing Is...

Ah. Hello blog. It's been a long time. I haven't sat down to write in a week. Last week's posts were all written in one swarm of inspiration and scheduled for release. (Now you know one of my secrets.) It's been busy - really busy - so I'm just now finding a moment to catch a few quiet moments to blog.

Today I'm writing from my mommy heart, capturing yet again the heart of my precious child. Last week he thoroughly enjoyed himself in an underwater adventure also known as Vacation Bible School. Wall murals straight from the movie "Finding Nemo" have now made their way to the walls of his room and playroom. (Thanks to Nana for confiscating some of the leftover VBS decorations!)

He was thrilled to come home each night and repeat the bible story they'd been taught. But his teachers were more than eager to share that by Thursday night's bible story time, E proudly announced, "The first thing is you have to be saved!" Reportedly he was preaching. I wish I could have seen it!

Even today as we prayed on our morning drive, I asked if there was anything he wanted to talk to God about and he told me, "I want to tell Jesus how much I love Him!"

Then he asked me, "Do you love God?"

The heart of a child. It melted the heart of this mama.

It was March 31, 1984. I was 5 years old and I had heard my Sunday School teacher share how we needed Jesus to save us from our sins so we could go to heaven with Him. I came home to tell my mom I didn't want to die without Jesus and I wanted to ask Him to save me from my sins. I don't know the words I prayed but I have a vivid memory of kneeling by my bed and seeking Jesus as my Savior. It started there...but it most certainly didn't stop there.

These instances have made me all the more aware of this little boy who is soaking up every word, every bible story, every prayer, and everything he sees in me.

I want him to see that yes, I love God, but not only that, it is a part of my very existence. I want him to know and understand what he was "preaching" to his VBS class - that the first thing is you have to be saved, but that is just the beginning. It's not just a fleeting prayer. It's a heartchange, a life commitment. The beginning of a lifelong relationship with eternal impact.

As I see his personality developing, as I watch the changing temperment, as I witness him learning how to handle his emotions, as I observe his interactions and relationships with others and secretly spy on his creative mind during imaginative play...I am reminded of a heart that rests inside this little boy. A heart that I pray will grow up to love and serve Jesus. A mind I pray will seek wisdom. Eyes that I pray will see needs in others. A voice I pray will carry the good news. Hands I pray will seek to serve. Feet I pray will go wherever God leads. And at the beginning of it all is the first thing that I pray will be a commitment this little boy makes.