Bedtime Prayers

Do you ever wish you could crawl inside your child’s head for just a minute or two? I mean, you may not want to stay there too long, but just long enough to know what they’re thinking. I do.

Sometimes I try to imagine Noah as a movie director or animation producer. I wonder what Judah and his little engineer brain will think to solve or invent. As I watch Noah plan and execute his movies to perfection, I wonder what he’ll be doing in the next ten years. Or as Judah takes his water play to the next level of creating a fountain from a storage bin, a laundry bucket, a toilet plunger (don’t worry; it’s very clean) , and the hose. The things they are really good at are not my areas of expertise —at all.

As parents, Neil and, I have a responsibility to help prepare Noah and Judah for this life, and so often, I feel I’m in over my head. I mean, how do we do this? The other night, I pondered these thoughts as I helped Noah get ready for bed.

Me: “Noah, are you ready to pray?”

Noah: “Yes.”

Me: “Okay, you start, and I’ll finish.”

Noah: “Dear heav’ly Father, thank you for this day and thank you for James, the really

useful red engine. In Jesus’ name, amen.”

*****

Cute. Maybe Noah’s on to something, though. How can I give them answers about life when I’m not sure of the questions?

Teachable moments. Maybe this one’s mine.

*****

My turn: “Thank You, Lord, for Noah. And thank You for James, the really useful engine. Please make us Your useful engines. Help us to keep chugging when life gets hard. Please help us to stay on the tracks and trust You and listen to Your directions so we can be really useful, just like James. In Jesus’ name, amen.”