Thanks-living

Like all parents, we try to raise our children to the best of our ability (and still we know that we fall short). There are moments that we can't believe our children would do or say some of the things they do. But there are also plenty of other moments where we are so proud of them for what they do and say. Of course, we want to take credit for it, but if we're honest we know it's really God at work in their lives.

Last night at bedtime was one of those moments. After I had tucked John into bed and prayed with him, I was getting ready to leave the room. Of course like most kids, he tries to think about things to talk about in these moments, so he can stall for a little more time. Last night what he said to me was "Dad, can we make a list of things that I'm thankful for, so I can take it to Heaven with me and give it to God?" Wow! Where did that come from?

I said, it would be great to make list of things you're thankful for and then we can share the list with God when we pray and we can thank Him for all of those things. I told him that I'd be happy to help him with his list tomorrow, but for now he needed to get to sleep. He thought for a brief moment and then asked again if he could take the list to Heaven to give to God.

Without getting into a deep theological conversation...with a 4 year old...at bedtime (actually past bedtime now) I told him that when we go to Heaven we don't take anything with us. He was okay with not taking toys, stuffed animals or other things that he really liked, but he still didn't see why he couldn't take the list. Oh well, maybe he'll understand that when he's five.

My prayer is that we can all remember to be this thankful. Not just at this time of the year, but every day of our lives. It's what I like to call "Thanks-living".