"Eternal Souls"

Ok...for those of you that may have been following my blogs..this will be no surprise to you..I spoke earlier about how my mind is constantly being bombarded with ideas and thoughts that I would like to share with those who read this and allow me an opportunity to convey into words what is on my heart..and each day it is a lot like "Plinko"..never really knowing where my heart may take me..Many times it is directly to scripture and others about life in general..Well..I want to share a moment with you that will forever be etched in my heart and soul..a moment with my two oldest girls I will cherish and fall back on no doubt many more times and chronicling this here affords me the opportunity to revisit it as often as I like.. I think many times, we look back on our life and forget all the instances that provide us great joy and seem to only remember the times that inflict great pain..but if we will slow down long enough to let life unfold before us and capture those precious moments that may never return..it will inevitably do our heart and our souls much good..so..please allow me to share one of those tender moments..

I was listening to Focus on the Family today and they had a speaker by the name of Dee Breston..I believe her name is..I may have botched that badly but what matters is what she said that caused a mental synapse to take place in me.. She was speaking about rearing children and how God had come into her life at 21 years of age and transformed her and her thinking..The part that hit me and birthed this message is this.. she said ' I was believing a lie...and the lie was I was wasting my life cleaning bottoms and runny snotty noses..but God impressed on me that I was actually nurturing an eternal soul that had been gifted to me".. WOW..nurturing an eternal soul..I cant ever say I have looked at my girls with that perspective..as much as I love and care for them..that has really never crossed my mind..I mean I know I am accountable for my family and I have a vital role in the rearing of my children..but it was always about them..Not necessarily their soul..and the eternal direction I was guiding them..thru example or words, etc.

So then I had a flashback of a moment where God Almighty pointed me to show me what He desires more of from me..So I get this daily email from a site called ALL PRO DADS...(this is a great site for all the dads who might read this http://www.allprodad.com/ )..This particular day, they sent this email and I just want to copy the exact email here so you can see ...

The real you

In a Newsweek interview, actor Johnny Depp said, "When I became a dad for the first time, it was like a veil being lifted...I was never horribly self-obsessed or wrapped up in my own weirdness, but when my daughter was born, suddenly there was clarity. I wasn't angry anymore. It was the first purely selfless moment that I had ever experienced. And it was liberating. In that moment, it's like you become something else. The real you is revealed."What did your child's birth reveal about the real you? Why not tell them at dinner tonight? Or write them a note and put it on their pillow? We sure spend a lot of time correcting our children. Why not also tell them what a profound difference they've made in our lives?

Ok..so now you have the email..Now I always try to take to heart the things I can do to express my unconditional love to them but this time led me to a moment I will never ever forget..So I took the advice of this email and crafted a letter to my girls..I tried to express to them just how profound of an impact they have made on me...I can be very hard on them and my discipline style lacks a lot to be desired..so I saw this as a perfect opportunity to share with them..My oldest is almost 8 and reads extremely well, so I knew she would be able to read and understand a letter..Jaydin is also a terrific reader for a 6 year old but I was not sure she would be able to grasp the real intent of my letter and my true feelings may not shine thru as I might have hoped...I typed the letter up and printed it off and laid it at their seats where we do our homework every day after school..Here is a copy of that letter..

Girls..I know I spend an awful lot of time telling you what not to do and what to do..As your Dad a large portion of my responsibility is to teach you right from wrong and to share with you the good news of Jesus Christ..but I also want to take a minute to tell you how much I love you and how much I am blessed by having two wonderful daughters such as you guys..From the very day you guys were born, I have been a changed man..You give me reason each and every day to work hard and leave a good example behind for you to follow..I am amazed at how each day brings about new opportunities to share with each other the life we have together..The good times and then those not so good times..I want you to know that I cherish every single minute I have with you and that I will be very very sad when you decide to marry and move out of my home for good..and into your new life building your very own family..I pray every single day that God give me the wisdom to share with you, the love to be kind to you and the humility to admit when I am wrong..You guys inspire me to be the best I can be and I cant tell you how much joy you bring to my life..I love you both so very much that I can hardly explain it. You are so very precious to me.. I love the way you smell. I love the way you smile. I love the way you hug me and kiss me.. I love the laughter you share with me and each other and I especially love the attitude you have toward me..You make it so easy to show my affection for you..To express my Love for you..I am the proudest Dad in this world because God gave me such wonderful, absolutely beautiful girls like YOU..

Thank You for being part of my life..

Thank You for being my daughters..

Thank you for Loving me..

Thank you for sharing life with me..

Thank you for being YOU!!

Your Loving Dad..

Ok..you have the letter and how we got to this point..Now this is where it simply overwhelms my soul..As CJ was sitting at her seat reading this letter, I was going thru her folder making sure everything was in order and I heard her make a sniffing sound..a sound you make when you are about cry..I paused and looked at her and I could see an emotion on her face I had never seen before..I was careful not to interrupt, so I carried on..The more she read, the more she sniffled until she began to cry..I was astonished..She could actually feel the raw emotion that was permeating from my letter..She walked over to me and while crying and sobbing and sniffling, she hugged me intensely...and I asked her.."CJ, honey, why are you crying?" and she said "Daddy, tears of joy" in a faint whisper like voice.. I can barely even type this out due to the emotion that is whaling up inside me even in this moment...which I might add is no comparison to the moment we shared during that hug.. She had looked at me and with tears streaming down her cheeks, she shared with me a moment that I can barely put to words.. A father daughter moment where a simple letter spoke to the heart of a young child so clearly that it was unmistakable..and forever left an indelible impression on my heart..

My message is to never take for granted the small things in life and never take for granted your children know you love them.. You may tell them every single day, sometimes 10-15 times a day, as I had...but there is always room to express that in different ways..just like this simple letter..

I also would like to share with you one last thing..The next day at bedtime, I walk into the girl's room and guess what I saw taped to the wall above each of their beds..Yes it was that very same letter..Can I just tell you that I will never be able to construct such moments but God is so faithful in rewarding us when we will take the time to do the things that nurture His eternal souls..He blessed me with a moment that no amount of money could ever buy..







CJ's letter is right there above the "J"..in typed format







Jaydin's letter is in the middle of this picture..


God is so Wonderful and I am so Blessed to have been gifted such amazing children. I pray that He will be glorified and exalted and that I can make Him proud by leading these precious eternal souls to Love and Adore Christ...for that is my hearts desire

EB