"I Love You"
I don't know about you, but I am a sucker for these words when it comes to children.
This morning I was on the phone with my sister (who lives far away) when she dropped my niece at school. I was on speakerphone and told my niece, "I love you! Have a great day at school!" and my niece yelled back, "I love you too!" Then my 3 year old nephew yelled, "I love you too, ____!"
Oh, man, my heart. Instantaneous jell-o.
I don't know what it is about those 3 words and children. I go from a strong woman of God to a blubbering mass of nothing when a child says I loves you, gives me a kiss, or gives me a hug. Its really rather pitiful.
I can see it now: my niece will be 16 years old, borrow my car, have an accident, and smash it into bits, but she comes to me and says "I wrecked your car--but, I love you!" And I'll stand there with a doofus-y grin on my face and stars in my eyes saying, "Ohhh baby girl, I love you TOOOO!!!!"
Sad.
Or maybe just, enamored.
One day several years ago I was teaching math to a particularly wonderful pre-K class I had when a child who had been in my room for 3 years raised his hand. This was a child who had caused me endless problems. We had literally had to wrestle him to teach him to sit in a chair, he had yelled profanities at me, and he was a frequent flier in the time out chair for hitting & biting other students. He was often whining, complain-y, and moan-y.
But this day during math he raised his hand. "Yes, M___?"
"Mrs. P, I love you," he said, and came up to give me a hug. Out of nowhere.
Oh my GOSH. "Oh honey, I love you too, " I replied.
Math time totally stopped while the rest of the class felt obliged to come up and give me hugs and "I love you too's." Which of course, left me in a pile of jell-o-y, share-the-l0ve-let's-stop-math-and-do-something-more-fun mode.
I'm just a sucker that way, I guess. If someone loves me, especially a child, I want to just soak it in. Stop and let my heart be filled up. Take a break from all the harsh things going on in the world and share the love.
Do you ever wonder if God is like that too? For He,too, is enamored with us. And most of the time we, his children, come to him with complaints and requests and in whine & groan mode (as do our own children, right?) Do you ever wonder if when we come to God simply with an "I love you" He ever just stops what He's doing and lets his heart turn to jell-o and stops to soak it up?
Ever wonder if sometimes its good to stop asking God for things and just stop and say, "Hey, thanks for just being You, and by the way, I love you!"
How about right now?
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