OUR HEARTS TOWARD GOD

        Forgive me if I shared this with you back in 2004 via email.  I didn’t know what to do with anything I wrote then and probably have nothing left from that time.  I was moving things around the other day and came across this.  Somehow it made it through the move by being under stuff and as I finished reading I found it still spoke to me. 

Logan spent the summer with his grandparents so his mom would not have to pay childcare.  She came in each weekend to be with him.  Since his grandparents raised girls; the summer was an eye-opening experience.  He was leaving the baby stage and, was entering the boy-man stage of life.  He had begun to get nasty, smell nasty; and leave everything nasty.

He was Pop’s Partner and Nana’s Sweet Pea (when no was near to hear).  Pop taught him to burn ants with a magnifying glass; do yard work and work hard; to be a gentleman and watch out for your women.  He also learned to rig a fishing line; how to safely handle his hunting rifle; and a million other things.  Pop and Log enjoyed riding on Pop’s motorcycle and swimming together and watching Fear Factor.  Nana hated Fear Factor!

Nana taught him how to swim under water and made sure he got swimming lessons.  She fed him every 2-3 hours when he said he was starving.

They went to VBS together, shopped together and popped fireworks together.  Nana made sure he had household chores and when he tried to sneak through the house to scare her she turned the tables on him.  Most importantly, Nana and Pop talked about God a lot and made sure he went to church.

Night times were special to Nana as she prayed over him and she got her Nana sugar and he got his Logan sugar.

One weekend when he was going home with his mom, and Pop had to work; Nana sarcastically made the remark that she would try not to cry.  Logan whispered in Pop’s ear that it would be all right because God would be with her.

Logan almost never stopped talking, eating, or moving; so Nana learned a survival tip early in the summer.  Every afternoon after lunch she set a timer and Logan would go to his room and watch a video, read, play, or lie down.  The time was his unless she noticed he really needed to res.  In that case, he was to lie down and watch a video.

I was on one of these occasions that she was standing in the doorway of his room setting the timer and chitchatting with him that he called her name.

“Nana?”

She turned and looked at him as she was putting the timer on the bookcase.

“I love you.”

“I love you, too”, she replied.  “Rest well, ok?”

As she closed the door, she felt a surge of emotion as she realized the impact of the conversation.  She and Pop had always initiated the “I love you”; and he had always responded with “I love you, too.”  This time he had initiated the interaction.

 Nana had seen his body language, heard the tone of his voice, and had seen the look in his eyes.  At that moment, they both realized how much he loved her.  It wasn’t about receiving anything from her or talking to her.  It was about how he felt toward her.

Later she realized she might have tasted what the Father feels when His children respond from their hearts.  Not just because they should thank Him or love Him or because it is expected.  It is simply because of who He is and because they know His heart. 

Late in the night she heard her Pastor say what he had said many times nearing the end of church praise and worship time.

“Open your mouth and tell Him how much you love Him.  There are a million voices out there; but He is longing to hear your voice.”

He is longing to see your body language, see the look in your eyes, hear the tone of your voice and when you call out His name He will stop and turn and look at you.  At that very moment you will both know how much you love Him.

B.D.

August 7, 2004

It is hard to believe Logan is now a teenager.  My heart still melts at the sound of his name or any of my grandchildren’s names.  I want my heart to melt at the sound of my Daddy God as it does with my grandchildren.  I hope you will join me in seeking His face and more than you seek what is in His hand.