I couldn't help thinking about my response to new experiences in my life. Am I curious? Do I eagerly explore and check out all the possibilities? And what do I do when the newness starts to wear off? What do I do when I get "cold feet"? I hope that I'm like Ebony; I hope that I get as close to the Master as I can possibly get.
One reward the children love is going to the creek. When the strawberries are picked, the weeding is done, the house is cleaned - whatever task for the day is completed - the kids love playing in the water. This past week, we took Ebony with us. She'd never been to that creek before and it took a while for her to settle down - so many smells, so little time, and the tether was way too short in her opinion. Eventually, she was content to stand by my chair. Inevitably, her feet got cold. So she put both front feet on the arm of my chair. Then she looked at her back feet as if to tell me that they were still cold. So I told her she could climb up in my lap. Really. All I said was, "Alright. Come on." That was all the invitation she needed. Once seated in my lap, she quickly decided that lying across my lap would be more comfortable.
I couldn't help thinking about my response to new experiences in my life. Am I curious? Do I eagerly explore and check out all the possibilities? And what do I do when the newness starts to wear off? What do I do when I get "cold feet"? I hope that I'm like Ebony; I hope that I get as close to the Master as I can possibly get.
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I can always tell when life speeds up; I go for weeks without writing anything on the blog!! And I'm not really going to write anything new here either. I was looking for a piece I'd saved several years ago about Mother's Day. I was amazed at the "stuff" I've saved on my computer! In among all of that "stuff," I found this email. I thought you'd appreciate how my then five-year-old son responded to the parable of the talents:
Sent: Sunday, March 20, 2005 11:25 AM Subject: The Parable of the Talents Ron and I really like to do active lessons with the > kids. Well, yesterday we had the chance again because Ron's recovering > from a nasty stomach virus. > We had a quiet day. The last time we'd stayed home, we did the parable > of the Good Samaritan with the boys. We acted it out several times, > changing roles. They loved it. So yesterday, Ron wanted to do the > parable of the talents with the boys. He read the account first. Then > he told Jonathan he'd have the 5 talents, Christopher the 2 talents, and > I would play the servant given the one talent. Ron gave 5 checkers to > Jonathan, told him he was going away, that he would return and wanted to > see what Jonathan could do with his talents. He told Christopher and I > similarly. Then Ron hid checkers around the living room and left. The > boys looked for their checkers and found the corresponding number for > their given talents. Then Ron returned. When he called Jonathan to > him, Ron was having a hard time controlling his tears. It was so > powerful! But he talked with Jonathan and Christopher. Then he called > me. As I unburied my talent from under the rug and took it to Ron, I > was already fighting tears. But as I explained that Ron was a hard man, > reaping where he did not sow, I couldn't stop my tears. And with my > tears, Ron's were also flowing. Ron called the boys and explained that > it will be like that for anyone who chooses not to serve God - thrown > out of the kingdom with weeping and gnashing of teeth. Ron said, "Look > at your mommy's face." It wasn't much better when we switched roles: > I was the king, Christopher 5 talents, Jonathan 2 talents, and Ron 1 > talent. This time Ron really played up the laziness - with Jonathan > constantly exhorting him to look for talents, that the king would be > returning. It was still hard to throw Ron out of the kingdom. When > Christopher wanted to play it again, Jonathan immediately volunteered to > be the servant with one talent. Ron told him that it was not an easy > part to play. Jonathan soberly said, "I know, but I don't want either > of you to be tossed out of God's kingdom." As you can imagine, > Jonathan's sacrificial attitude did Ron and I in again. With tears > streaming down our faces, we held Jonathan and talked about the role > play. As Ron said, we'll never read that section of scripture again the > same way. > Love, Cynthia I may not have found the Mother's Day piece I was looking for, but this reminder of the love of my child was a pretty special Mother's Day present. |
AuthorCynthia Saladin is a homeschooling mom of three, with a passion for teaching them about God and having a personal relationship with him. Archives
November 2023
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