...because He loves you and wants a relationship with you...
This was my answer to my sweet-girl's question about, "If God knows everything, why do I need to talk to Him at all?"
This discussion we had yesterday sent my heart dancing with joy... already such a clear answer to my prayers this week for her heart!! We were talking about Him and she honestly wanted to understand. She seems to get why we pray intercessory prayers, or even prayers of supplication. I understand why we ask for things, she said.
I was suggesting that Father God invites us to much more than asking. Asking, yes! But, I was reminding her that her heavenly Father wanted her to talk to Him, to tell Him her thoughts, her worries, her fears, her random-thoughts. And, she wondered why she would need to do that?! He knows all those things already, she rightly assessed!
...because He loves you and wants a relationship with you. And, real relationships always involve two-way communication.
...you know, like Daddy and I, I shared. Daddy knew yesterday that I was frustrated. Remember in the kitchen? I asked. She nodded. Daddy (and He is NOT God) certainly could have guessed that I was annoyed and frustrated. He saw my actions, he heard my words. He knew I was upset, right? Well, did you know that later on that evening he asked me about what happened in the kitchen. He wanted me to tell him how I was feeling. He wanted to hear my words, my thoughts, my feelings, ...He wanted me to share with him. Your Daddy loves me and wants a relationship with me. ...so we talk. That is similar to what God wants.
...because, sweet-girl, God loves you and wants a relationship with you.
The next day she told me that she had talked to God. She told me that as she lay in bed she began to tell Him about her day, her feelings, and even about the book she was writing. I was thrilled!! She said that she even asked Him a question. She had asked Him what He thought of this novel. She wasn't sure if she heard His answer or not... but she asked and waited and listened.
My sweet, budding teenage daughter came one step closer to understanding that Father God deeply, passionately and faithfully loves her and that He wants a relationship with her. What an answer to prayer!
AND, I am reminded that He loves me and wants a relationship with me!
"I do my best parenting by praying!" ~Paul Miller
