turning bad things into good

My daughter, Korey, is the "bad words" police in our house. If you say a word that she knows she is not allowed to say, then she will tell you that you can't say that word! She said a funny thing today. After reprimanding Rich for saying the word "stupid," (one of the bad words), she told him, "I am trying to turn all of my bad things into good things," and she explained to him that she says 'silly' instead of 'stupid.'

Korey is starting to explore spiritual things a little closer these days. The other day in the car she said she was eating her piece of cheese so she could share it with God. When I asked her what she meant, she said that since God lives in her heart, she had to eat the cheese to share it with Him.

I realized that I am seeing the Holy Spirit working on my little girl's 3-year-old heart and mind. She may not understand all that it means for God to live in your heart or that our whole life process is about dieing to self and living for Christ, yet through the Spirit, I am convinced He is helping her to understand those very truths on her level. She has a desire for the things that God wants, like turning her bad things into good. She thinks about God living in her heart, I dare say, she is abiding in Christ by wanting Him to share her cheese.

Maybe I am overspiritualizing just some sweet and funny things that my daughter said, but I would rather believe that the Spirit works on those of us He has chosen from the moment we are born. It spurs me on to pray more for her and for myself. It makes me want to be a better parent and better child of God. It makes me want to memorize scripture so I can turn cute sayings into teachable moments. Wouldn't it have been great if I had been able to quote Romans 8:28, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to [his] purpose." Or to be able to have a conversation about John 15:4, "Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me."

My walk with God in no longer just about me, it is now the example that my girls see of Christ and what it is like to live a life for Him. Lord, help me not screw up too badly.