Heaven
(written Sept 26, 2011 morning)
I’ve always wondered when the conversations would start. When is a child old enough to understand Bible stories? To start grasping details about Jesus and heaven? How do you introduce these topics? Well, this past week we found out. At breakfast one morning, Honeygirl asked her daddy, “Do you know where you are going?” He responded with, “Yep! I’m going to heaven.”
“Work?” she asked?
Okay, so she didn’t quite get it, but it made for the opening of a great conversation. He briefly explained that someday he will go live with Jesus in heaven. She, of course, wanted to know if she could go too. He said, “I hope so!”
Later, as he recounted the conversation to me, she asked if I was going to go heaven. I said I was. Again, she asked if she could go to. We told her that we hope she gets to go someday, but first she’ll have to tell Jesus she wants to go. By then, she was done with the conversation, but it was so sweet to have that first little talk.
And then as if one talk in the past week wasn’t enough, we got to have another conversation this morning. See, last night we found out that Grandpa Sherbie (my father-in-law’s dad) is in the hospital, not doing well. The doctors have given him 1-3 days at this point. We decided we needed to leave first thing this morning and drive the three hours to be with family and say goodbye to Grandpa. As we were getting ready this morning, I told Honeygirl that Grandpa Sherbie was sick and we needed to go visit him in the hospital. Her sweet, compassionate heart came right out. She was instantly concerned. “I need to give Grandpa Sherbie a hug and give him my blankie so he can be all better,” she said with a very concerned look on her face. At that point, we didn’t know if she would even be allowed on the same floor of the hospital as him, being as he was in ICU. I carefully tried to explain that I didn’t know if she would be able to give him a hug, and that it was just his turn to go live with Jesus. Difficult conversation to have for sure.
Honeygirl giving Grandpa Sherbie a hug this past May (with GiGi)
I’ve always wondered when the conversations would start. When is a child old enough to understand Bible stories? To start grasping details about Jesus and heaven? How do you introduce these topics? Well, this past week we found out. At breakfast one morning, Honeygirl asked her daddy, “Do you know where you are going?” He responded with, “Yep! I’m going to heaven.”
“Work?” she asked?
Okay, so she didn’t quite get it, but it made for the opening of a great conversation. He briefly explained that someday he will go live with Jesus in heaven. She, of course, wanted to know if she could go too. He said, “I hope so!”
Later, as he recounted the conversation to me, she asked if I was going to go heaven. I said I was. Again, she asked if she could go to. We told her that we hope she gets to go someday, but first she’ll have to tell Jesus she wants to go. By then, she was done with the conversation, but it was so sweet to have that first little talk.
And then as if one talk in the past week wasn’t enough, we got to have another conversation this morning. See, last night we found out that Grandpa Sherbie (my father-in-law’s dad) is in the hospital, not doing well. The doctors have given him 1-3 days at this point. We decided we needed to leave first thing this morning and drive the three hours to be with family and say goodbye to Grandpa. As we were getting ready this morning, I told Honeygirl that Grandpa Sherbie was sick and we needed to go visit him in the hospital. Her sweet, compassionate heart came right out. She was instantly concerned. “I need to give Grandpa Sherbie a hug and give him my blankie so he can be all better,” she said with a very concerned look on her face. At that point, we didn’t know if she would even be allowed on the same floor of the hospital as him, being as he was in ICU. I carefully tried to explain that I didn’t know if she would be able to give him a hug, and that it was just his turn to go live with Jesus. Difficult conversation to have for sure.
Honeygirl giving Grandpa Sherbie a hug this past May (with GiGi)
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