Sometimes things happen that cause me to realize I am my father’s child. When I was a kid, there were times when a seemingly “normal” event would take place and my father would say, “You know, there’s a good illustration in there”. I’m a preacher’s kid so there were many times when an impromptu object lesson would rear it’s head. So at the risk of sounding like my dad…

My wife and I currently have 6 grandchildren, 4 girls and 2 boys with 1 on the way. Our oldest son doesn’t live very far away but far enough so we don’t get to see him and his family as often as we would like. Our other sons live close and so we get to see our second son’s 3 children often. On some weekends we will have the 2 older ones while my mother (who goes by GiGi to her great-grands) will take the baby. As a result, while the youngest used to be Pop-Pop’s girl (me), she now belongs to GiGi. I’m not bitter but that’s a subject for another day.

A few weekends ago we had the kiddos but unfortunately they were sick. Thankfully it seemed to be more or less a 24 hour bug but since they are only 3 and 4 years old they were still quite miserable. However, by Monday when their parents came to get them they were both fine.

On Monday morning my wife gets up for work as usual but on this particular day instead of driving herself she is carpooling. When her ride arrives she kisses me and the 3 year old goodbye (the 4 year old was still asleep), she grabs her bag, puts it over her shoulder says, “I gotta go!” and walks out the door. So now it’s just Pop-Pop and the grandbabies.

All in all it was a normal morning with them. I fed them breakfast, my grandson Avery began to use Grandma’s tablet to watch Mickey Mouse videos and my granddaughter Ellie (Elena) tired to get into everything within her 3 year old reach. At one point I realized Ellie wasn’t going back and forth, in and out of our bedroom as she had been. Anyone with children or if you’ve been around kids for any length of time knows when they are quiet for a long time, something is usually up.

I walked into our bedroom and this little girl had taken all of our pillows off the bed and made a “ladder” in front of her Grandmother’s dresser. She used this ladder to open the drawer where we keep their clothes and took out her “pretty pink dress”. I said, “what are you doing?” and she handed me the dress. I asked her, “You want to get dressed?” and she nodded her head yes. I proceeded to change her diaper and noticed she already had her shoes on. They were on the wrong foot but she put them on nonetheless. We get the dress on her, fix her shoes and without missing a beat, she walks over next to the dresser, grabs her Grandmother’s empty computer bag, puts it over her shoulder, looks up at me, says, “I gotta go!” and walks toward the front door. I naturally laugh while shaking my head in disbelief while asking her, “Little Girl, where do you think you’re going?”. Everything she says is not completely understandable yet but she did answer my question. She clearly had an objective/purpose in mind but since her grandfather is at least slightly wiser than a 3 year old, obviously I did not let her leave the house.

This event got me thinking about my relationship with God. My granddaughter at 3 years old was smart enough to know she could use those pillows in order to achieve her first goal. However, she was not wise enough to understand the dangers associated with using items in a way they weren’t intended to be used. Maybe she was simply imitating her grandmother, even though several hours had past since my wife left. Maybe she called herself going to find her. Perhaps she thought she would go visit Na-Na (her other great-grandmother who lives across the street from us). Whatever her intent, because she did not encounter any set backs through the process it seems as if she believed everything was ok; only to be stopped in her tracks because her plan was not ultimately safe for her and the responsibility for her life is not her own.

How many times have I moved forward with a plan, knowing I am doing things outside of what God’s intent and purpose is for my life? How many times have I taken something that God has created and used it for a purpose other than the way He intended for it to be used? The answer… too many times to count. While there was a zero percent chance of my granddaughter leaving the house on her own, had she asked me for her clothes she would have gotten the same initial result. There have been numerous times when I have created my own “ladder” instead of asking and waiting on God. While I may have been able to grab the “outfit” I wanted, I still know I am operating outside of God’s purpose but then often want to act surprised when “suddenly” I am halted from walking out the door.

I am thankful I have a Heavenly Father who is wise enough to sometimes stop me in my tracks no matter how “successful” some of my initial actions may be.