Alden’s Bedtime Prayers & “The kids who are sick.”
You sometimes wonder if all the extra energy and effort it takes to vigilantly teach your children about following God will stick. A couple evenings ago my faith in parenting was restored a little.
Just after dinner I was reading a newspaper article about the recent cyclone in Myanmar and explaining to our 3-year-old son Alden about the “people who were hurt” and “the kids who were sick.” So I told him that we needed to pray for “the kids who were sick.”
He paused for maybe 5-6 seconds (because I forced him to look me in the eyes and listen, if only for a moment) and he gave what seemed like an understanding nod… and then ran off to continue playing at warp speed for the next 2 hours before bedtime, oblivious to the tragedy and suffering happening a world away.
Well, as soon as I walked into his bedroom to say our nightime prayers, his eyes lit up. He’d been waiting for me… “Daddy, I already prayed for the kids who are sick!” I gleamed, “Alright, buddy! Good job!” and we ended the day with a nice hug and a small reminder that God can work… even in the lives of spazzy 3-year-old boys.