Lost in Translation....

While I would love to report that we hold a family devotional time every evening without fail, that would not.be.keeping.it.real. So here's the real deal...we go through seasons where we have a smattering here and there of devotional times and then we have times of fairly consistent family devotionals. Those times of consistency in the evening are incredibly sweet, when we set aside the dogmatism of practices and classes and early bedtimes, and we join together as a family, sprawled on the couches, listening and talking.

3 of 8 is an 'active' listener. As a little guy, he would be the one standing on his head, picking lint out of the carpet, rolling one extended foot in a large circle. He doesn't 'look' like he is listening...he looks more like an advertisement for Adderall. But somehow, even though quite aerobic, he manages to have an incredible recall for the lessons taught during these times.

When 3 of 8 was about 4 years old, we had been through a round of having to be on the kids quite a bit about various behavior issues. This one had been sassy, that one had been passively rebellious, this one had just flat broken the rules about not sneaking cupcakes upstairs to the bathroom and eating them in the closet. M decided that he would teach a family devotional on obedience and how parents who love their kids make sure those kids understand and follow the family rules. M paraphrased a passage from Proverbs, saying, "Kids, remember, the man who loves his children disciplines them. A father who wants the best for his kids makes sure they follow the rules. BUT...he who does not love his kids doesn't bother. He who hates his children will not set rules and will not discipline his kids. He who won't do these things doesn't love his kids at all..."

At which point, 3 of 8 stood stock-still from his twitching, foot rolling fidgeting and said, "Daddy, who is He Who and why does he hate his children?"

He Who was one of the minor prophets, right?......