The Beauty of Christ in Children

This morning my three girls woke up early in the trailer we were sleeping in here in rural Mississippi. As I awoke to the sound of birds chirping I also heard their whispers. Since it was not time to get up yet I told them they could read their Bibles while I went to shower. I returned to find them reading quietly in bed and as I entered they all clamored to tell me how many verses they had memorized. How many people can say they get that response when they wake up their kids in the morning?! The first words out of little Racheal's mouth this morning were "I will give thanks to the Lord because of his righteousness and will sing praise to the Lord most high." Rose then quoted John 3:16 and Esther could hardly wait to tell me Proverbs 3:3 (Let love and faithfulness never leave you. Bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.). Music to my ears this morning and it put a song of joy in my heart as we ate breakfast, took some pictures on the dock by the lake, and sang prasies to the Lord at the top of our lungs all the way to church. Just when I am tempted to forget how special these children are or how privileged I am to be their auntie, God gives me mornings like this morning.

This afternoon the children have spent several hours rehearsing some new easter songs. I am grateful for a quiet afternoon to be outside with the Lord. After listening to a sermon by Major Ian Thomas I spent some time contemplating what it really means to empty myself and become a vessel to be used by the Lord. I know that God uses those who are available and often those who feel like failures, who are least qualified. David...Abraham...Jonah...Paul...and the list goes on. I've made decisions to empty myself and be a vessel. I want to be available to the Lord and I know it is a process, but I am just really trying to figure out on a daily basis what that means and how I can allow the Lord to change me, empty me, use me. It can be such a struggle to put off ourselves and be filled with the Spirit. Even 10 minutes after I was thinking these things and making promises to the Lord, I found myself being impatient with the children. O Lord please help me to be your servant to the world!