Fruits of the Spirit

Last week Jana accepted Christ in our bathroom.  She and Caylea were getting ready for bed and, according to Caylea, Jana started asking all kinds of questions.  She has been asking TONS of questions the entire 2 months she's been here and we've answered them all, even the tough ones like, "Will the horses in heaven be white or brown?" :)  She asked Caylea how to be saved and Caylea told her that she had to ask Jesus into her heart.  She then stopped and said the sweetest prayer, "Dear God, Please help everybody who is sick and everybody who isn't sick to be saved and help there to be no more sin in the world and help You to come in and save my heart.  Amen."  I know, it's not the most eloquent prayer, but she's not quite 5 yet, and the change in her was immediate.  I walked in on the tail end of the conversation and she said, "Auntie, I asked Jesus into my heart."  I hugged her up and told her how happy I was, then went to finish laundry.  The next thing I knew, I heard her running upstairs saying, "MOMMY, I'M SAVED!"  I made it up to the kitchen to clean up and she ran in to me again and said, in a quiet voice with the biggest grin on her face, "Auntie, I'm SAVED."  I hugged her up again and told her she's my sister now too, because we have the same heavenly Father.  She thought that was great.  She went in to Uncle Joe and said, "Uncle Joe, I'm SAVED!"  Then she wanted to call her Daddy, and her Mamaw, and anyone else who would listen and hear that JANA IS SAVED!!!

Jana used to cry when we would make her hold our hands to pray.  She then outgrew the crying but refused to actively participate in the prayer.  Over the last year, she's come around to being still, quiet, respectful, and even keeping her eyes closed during prayer.  This visit, she wanted to pray every now and then at dinner, but then she'd change her mind last minute and wouldn't do it.  I'm not joking when I say that the minute she accepted Christ into her little heart, she wanted to pray every meal, every bed time, and they were genuine, heart-felt prayers, not repetitious "God is great" prayers like most kids at her age pray.  It has been such a blessing to see her growth while she's been here.  

Her parents are going to let her come back every summer.  We have always had an even harder job than just witnessing.  It is easy to witness to children.  The harder job is to be effective examples to her.  We have to live lives worthy of Christ so that SHE will want to live a life worthy of Christ.  3 John 1:4 says, "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth."  To know that your children and the other children in your family, including my brother's 3, are being "trained in the way they should go" and know that they are walking in the truth provides a peace that I can't describe.  Knowing that I will see Caylea, Chloe, Joshua, Jared, Raychel, Hannah, and Jana in heaven is a blessing beyond description.  I pray that you "live a life worthy of the gospel of Christ" so that the children in your home will do the same.  It's not easy to be a good example, and failure must come with an apology; but when children see that we are truly striving, they watch and listen.  I assure you that their ears and hearts and eyes are ALWAYS open, so be 

careful little mouth what you say

careful little ears what you hear 

careful little eyes what you see

and I like to add, careful little heart how you feel because that will come out of your mouth! 

Philippians 1:27 "Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ."