Ever been completely blown away (shamed, humbled) by one of your children?
Ever totally overwhelmed by the sensitivity of one of your kids?
I have been.
Take tonight, for example.
My dh and I were on the couch, watching TV after a long day. I was tired, and needing serious down time.
Enter Sean. "Mommy, Reilly is crying and won't stop."
Me. "Oh for Pete's sake... I'll be back there in a minute..."
I finished watching the last few minutes of my show (still hearing her cry, but darn it, my "me time" was important, right?), and then grudgingly marched to the girls' room. You need to know that Reilly is our resident "cryer," and tends to do that when she gets overwhelmed. I expected to deliver a quick, "Settle down, love, you're just tired" and be done with it.
Nope.
Reilly was literally sobbing her heart out because -- get this -- there are people in hell. She said, "Mommy, I just hurt for them because they have to spend eternity with the devil and it's dark and scary there."
Oh. boy.
After a quick "give me the right words, Lord Jesus," we launched into a conversation covering all the bases again -- sin, free will, "God didn't make us robots," the wonder and awesomeness of the Incarnation, His death and Resurrection, the Good Thief, and how His greatest joy is being our Savior. We talked about His infinite mercy, and how He must sit at the edge of His seat, just waiting for the faintest cry from one of His children.
She settled down for a bit, and then started crying again. When I asked her why, she said, "it must make Jesus so sad to have people turn away from Him." I held her hand and told her that she could just try to love Him extra, to make up for the ones who pushed Him away today. That comforted her and with an "I love you, Jesus... and I wish I could give you a hug," she went to sleep.
I was completely humbled by a 7 year old.
4 comments:
I know exactly what you mean. It is humbling. And also a moment of complete pride in the child's ability to go to that level of compassion and understanding as their own person, as a soul independent from their family and parents. It is at those moments that I think I get a tiny glimpse of what God must feel when we make similar steps of our own.
Truly this is one of the times that I "get" why the family is a holy thing. :-)
This may be the most beautiful story I've ever read. What a very special little girl you have. Thanks for sharing with the rest of us.
What a touching post.
Thank you all.
It is a humbling, sad moment, when you realize that "your child" isn't really yours. She has a relationship with the Lord, independent of us. Of course, that's what we all pray for and work toward, but still... when you get the first glimpse of it, you realize that your child doesn't "belong" to you.
I am honored, though, that I still get to be her Mommy and, Lord willing, still teach her quite a bit as she grows and matures.
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