This morning Lucy did not want to wake up. She’s my late-riser.
Her delightful older siblings never had that problem. But Lucy is the one I
must often coax out of bed. Last night she had a nightmare so she was in my
bed. After I’d gotten the rest of the kids up and going, I walked into my room
and snuggled up next to her. She resisted my insistence that it was time to get
moving. I smiled as I told her she should count her blessings because none of
her siblings were getting snuggled awake. Her reply was gold: “I have a million zillion blessings. There’s no way I could count them all.”
There’s a sermon in there.
The night was fitful with scary dreams. Morning came early
and it was warm under those covers. Her daddy has only been in heaven for six
months. She’s had a rough week that included fights with her sister and
disagreements with a particularly unpleasant girl at school. She did not want
to wake up. And yet, in her semi-sleepy state, she knew a wonderful truth that she
didn’t have to think about—she is blessed. Pretty impressive for a five year
old. Heck, that’s pretty impressive for any of us.
Life stings sometimes. It’s rough and it’s hard and we have
to do things we don’t always want to do. In the midst of stress and
disappointment we can often forget that essential truth that God has blessed us
with so much. He’s given us another day to enjoy and relish in. He’s given His
Son, Jesus, to forgive our sins. He’s sent His Holy Spirit to guide us and
correct us. Those right there should fill our hearts with gratitude each day.
And that’s not even counting family, friends, and material blessings. She’s
right—it would take too long to count.
My heart swelled with pride a little. I think parents are
allowed moments sometimes when they see the fruits of their labors. Right then
I saw that somehow, somewhere my daughter had gotten the message that her life
is full of blessings. I pray that’s a lesson she never forgets and neither
should I.
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