Having attended a funeral last week for a 36 year old father of a little girl not much older than Sarah, I have returned home determined to simply BE with my kids more than I have been in the past. None of us know how much time we have with our precious little ones.
So even though I was in the middle of some computer work, I offered to climb into bed with her and tickle her back for a few minutes. (It's something she has loved since she was a toddler ... it would definitely not help ME fall asleep to have somebody tickle MY back, but it works for her.)
It turns out her lack of sleep was the result of a guilty conscience. Mid-tickle she started to cry and all of a sudden she was confessing - in halting, tearful breaths - to all sorts of recent lies she had told to her sister, her friend and her classmates.
I quickly called Hannah into the room and Sarah confessed a lie to her ... and was forgiven. Relieved, Sarah hopped out of bed to give her sister a hug. So precious!
I prayed with Sarah for forgiveness and then we went out to the living room again to confess to her mother (and teacher!) some lies and naughty behavior at school. She was forgiven, hugged tightly, and Melissa prayed over her too.
Once again, I carried Sarah down the hallway, crawled back into her bed and began to tickle her back. Now with a clear conscience before God and man, within a couple of minutes she was sound asleep.
What a reminder to me of the importance of keeping our hearts unhardened by sin.
And of the power of confession.
AND of the potential ministry in my own household I miss out on when I am "too busy" to pay attention.
Lord, forgive ME...
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9
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