"Okay, everybody! Head to the table, please. Let's get this party started!"
... groans and general grumpiness resounds ...
"Come on ... let's get this day started right. Lydia, will you please fetch us our books? Thanks. Hey, Aaron, off the iPod."
"I was just checking the temperature."
"Dude, it's cold. C'mon. Join us."
"Mom, Norah's in my seat."
"Scoot, scoot. Find your face and have a seat. We need to get hopping. It's a school day."
7:32 am
"Alright. What's today's date?"
"It's the 19th."
"Nuh-uh. It's the 18th."
"Yes, too. Look at the calendar."
"I did. You look at the calendar."
...scraping of seats and scuffles as kids scramble for the calendar ...
"Hey now, back to your seats. It's the 19th."
"Told you."
"Enough."
"I don't like it when you say, 'Told you.' It sounds bossy."
"Can you say you're sorry?"
"Sorry ..."
... grouch, grouch ...
"Like you mean it?"
"Sorry."
"I forgive you."
... grumble, mumble ...
"Okay, can we get going?"
7:35 am
"Let's see. The title for today's devotional is 'I Am Still Here'. We read in Psalm 27:8, "When You said, 'Seek My face,' My heart said to You, 'Your face, LORD, I will seek.'"
"Mom, she's touching me with her feet. And her feet are cold."
"Put your feet down, Sweetie. Sit up big. Back to the verse, Whose face are we to seek? ... Hey, where are you going?"
"I just need to put this in my backpack."
"Nope. Sorry. I want your attention for just a few more minutes. In your seat, please. Okey dokey, Whose face are we supposed to seek?"
"Jesus."
"Right. Here's some more that the author had to say ..."
7:40 am
"So Who is always watching over us and waiting for us to turn to Him?"
"Jesus."
"Yep ... hey now, sit up and stop fiddling with that. I just want to read two quick verses: Philippians 4:7 and Jeremiah 29:13. They are some of my favorites."
"Mom, you say that every morning."
"It's because it's true! Now sit tight for just a minute more. Uhm .. where are you going?"
"I go potty really bad."
"Okay, quick, quick. The rest of you ..."
"I'm sooo hungry, Mommy."
knock, knock ...
"Just a minute that's Baby S. Stay put for just a second."
7:47 am
"Okay. Settle down again, here we go. Remember that Jesus is always with you. Always."
"Skwaahk!"
"Honey, I know you love Baby S, but you have to give her some space. To breathe."
"Yes, Mommy."
"Let's pray really quick and then you can get your breakfast. C'mon. Pull yourselves together."
"I pray first."
"Go for it, Weeda."
"Dear Jesus, thank You day. Amen."
"Amen."
... mass exodus for the refrigerator ...
"Can I make myself an egg?"
Some days I wonder if I'm getting through, if it really matters at all. I know in my heart that this time is worthwhile, I just wish it wasn't so busy. And bustling. And bouncy. And brisk.
On these mornings, I have to remember that even if my efforts seem fruitless, God's promises still ring true:
10 As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. (Isaiah 55:10-11)
Although my brood appears more concerned with the temperature and the calendar and being right, God is planting His Word in their little hearts. And my job is to keep watering until they bud and flourish!
(Just in case you are wondering, the devotional we use in the morning is the kid's version of Jesus Calling by Sarah Young. I can't recommend it highly enough. I learn a little something every morning, too.)
__________________________________________
Prompt #4 ~ Describe the scene at breakfast.
I admire you for trying it in the morning! I used to do devotions with my kids when they were small. We did ours at night, which was a problem because I always tended to fall asleep!
ReplyDeleteGod bless you in your efforts. I know He will!