I hope I don’t speak too soon, but it’s one of those rare moments in my house when all 3 of my boys are napping at the same time. I thought I better start writing now, because who knows when my next chance will be. I keep thinking back to an instance that happened a few weeks ago; again when God used an everyday moment with my children to speak to me.

It was late. Like 10:00PM late, far past the kids’ bedtime; practically my bedtime. I also remember it was a Wednesday night, because my hubby wasn’t home yet. He works super late on Wednesday because that’s when the youth group meets and college group right after that. Anyho, so it’s just me and the littles. That night we had all gotten home late from church, so the boys didn’t get in bed until around 9:00pm.

So, now it’s 10:00pm and Noah had gotten up for about the 27th time that night, probably because he ate some sugar-laden candy with Red Dye #7 in it or something to that effect. I could hear him talking or yelling in his room so I walked that way to give him a piece of my mind (umm, my patience was gone by this point. I know, all you readers without kids would never lose patience with your kids, but whatever, keep reading). Before I open the door, I hear my sweet Noah singing these words off key, “My God’s not dead, He’s surely alive! He’s living on the inside, roaring like a lion. My God’s not dead, He’s surely alive!” And I lost it.

I slid down our crayon colored wall with tears in my eyes, and just listened to him singing. Granted, he’s 4, so it sounded more like “My God’s not dead, He’s suwly alive! Iving on the inside, woawing like a lion!” but they were just the sweetest words. I listened to my son singing, could picture him dancing on the Lego covered floor of his room while Timmy just slept through it all (because that’s what happens when you share a room your whole life. You sleep like a rock.). After a few minutes I walked in the room to actually see him jumping around and singing. He stopped in his tracks and looked at me wide eyed. He thought he was in some big trouble.

“Noah, where did you learn that song?” I asked. I asked him this, because although I was familiar with the song, it’s not one of my regular go-to songs. Trust me, we sing a lot in this house.

He gave me a puzzled look, as if I should already know the answer, and replied, “The car.”

“The car? Oh, you mean on the radio?” I asked.

“Yes! Remember?!” he said excitedly.

After singing with him, saying goodnight again, and kissing him on the forehead; he went to bed. As I left his room I was reminded of the impact I have on my child’s life. I make a big impact on my boys by all the little decisions I make every day: what we listen to in the car, how to respond to stressful situations, what books we read, how we treat daddy, giving to those in need, ect. Every day is an opportunity to teach our babies the values and lifeskills we wish for them. No one is perfect, trust me I get it, but I hope this has been a good reminder for all you parents, teachers, caregivers, grandparents, and influencers that we have a serious responsibility in our hands. God has entrusted us with our children, and we should lean on His strength and do what we can to make a positive impact on our children.

What little decision do you see making a big impact in your children?