It's a Wonderful Life

My last blog entry was about a day of Sabbath, and the time it afforded me to spend with my family. Yesterday, wasn't a day of "Sabbath", but it was a great day with family, and just a wonderful day in general.

K, my 5 year-old daughter, is full of energy and curiosity, and always makes me smile, despite the constant need to admonish her about her typical 5 year-old behavior. One of my favorite recent stories with her was an evening that we made a grocery store run for mom. As I placed her in the buggy--simply out of convenience, she rarely rides in the buggy anymore--I commented that she was growing too big to fit. I said "I sure wish you would stop growing so fast. I'm gonna miss my little girl when she's all grown up." And this little 5 year-old, without any hesitation, just says "Well, that's just how life goes Daddy."

So yesterday, we all went to Childrens Hospital for a doctor's appointment for the baby girl, J. J's doctor was great, assured us all is well, and gave much comfort. On the way back home, I took the family to the seminary I attended where we ate lunch and visited the bookstore. K loved the place! She was fascinated by an indoor water fountain, couldn't get enough of climbing up and down the stairs, and wanted to say "hello" to everyone in the building (very loudly at that). She certainly made her presence known!

As she was enjoying her adventure in a "new land", I thought about that evening when she reminded me of "how life goes." She will continue to grow and change, and much too soon, will no longer be a little girl, but will be a young woman living out her purpose and passion. I couldn't help but wonder if her passion would lead her back to the seminary or to a similar place of study and preparation. My prayers for her always include asking God to raise her up as a true disciple, completely in love with Christ, fully committed to God's plan for her life. Yesterday, in a very real and powerful way, I began to sense some of the hope and promise in seeing this little girl develop into a wonderful, loving daughter of God.