Summer's Decision

I could not be any more excited to share with you the news of this past weekend!  It is an answer to an almost daily prayer for the past 4ish years, ever since we knew there was a "Summer" inside of me...

On Saturday afternoon, October 19th, Summer became a Christian!

I walked into Summer's room when her quiet time was over (about 3:45pm) and she was doing the same thing she has been doing for the past 2 weeks during her quiet time....listening to her Bible on CD.  After chatting about what she had read about/learned that afternoon, I started fixing her hair (we were heading to a birthday party that afternoon).  As I was combing her hair, she matter of factly said,

"Mommy, while I was reading my Bible, I prayed to ask Jesus to forgive my sins, so now I can go to heaven."

My heart leaped for joy! 

"That is WONDERFUL!", I said!  "What did you pray?"

She said, "I said, 'Dear God, Please forgive my sins.  Thank you for dying on the cross.  Please give me an obedient heart.' "

I enveloped her in a massive hug, and we talked about how Mommy, and Daddy would be in heaven too and we would all be there together!  I also told her that now she had the Holy Spirit living inside of her and he would help her to make good choices.  After lots more excitement we went down to tell Daddy the good news!  Several times since then she has said, "Mommy, I am going to heaven!"  I exclaim, "YES, you are!!"  And we talk about all the other people that are going too!  We also talk about how some people haven't yet heard the good news that God can take away their sin, so we need to share that good news so lots of people can be in heaven with us!!!  Have you heard the good news?!?!  Here is a snapshot of Summer's journey to faith...

Summer's Journey...

Summer and I have been having MANY conversations about God, the Bible, Heaven, "the bad place", etc.  It all started maybe 6 months ago when she asked where Goliath was.   I told her that he was in a "bad" place because he didn't ask Jesus to forgive his sins.  From there the conversations spawned...we talked about how after we die, there are two places we can go.  We talked about how there is lots of crying and boo-boo's in the bad place and people hurt all the time.   We also talked about how heaven is where God is, and people who believe in Jesus and ask him to take away their sins get to go to heaven.

One night, about a month or two ago, Summer woke up crying.  She told me she was "looking at pictures on my cell phone of Goliath, Pharaoh, and King Herod "and they were in the bad place....and then she looked confused...I told her she was dreaming.  She asked me if there was a door on the bad place.  I told her it was very far away.  I told her that if she believed in Jesus and asked him to take away her sins she would never go there but would go to heaven.  She at that point didn't want to go to heaven because she wanted to stay at home with us, with her blankie, and with Tucker :-).   Paul and I prayed with her and tucked her back in. :)

Meanwhile, we continued our daily prayers, both with and without her, asking God to help her to come to know him at an early age.  I also know that Grandparents, friends from church, and my BSF leader were praying for her too.  What a blessing!!

Our spiritual conversations continued quite often throughout our days as we read her Bible in the morning, as she listened to her Big Picture Story Bible on CD at quiet time, and as various other questions of hers came up.  She continued to ask questions and grow in her understanding.

When she shared with me her "news" on Saturday afternoon, because of all the conversations we had previously had, I knew she understood that she is sinful (does bad things), that Jesus died on the cross and rose again to take the punishment for her sins, and that she had to accept that fact and ask Jesus to take away her sins, and then she would get to go live with God in heaven.

<sup>The Bible talks about how we are "born again" when we believe on Jesus' name.  We are no longer seen as sinful creatures, but rather as righteous because Christ took all our sin/shame/guilt away when he died on the cross.....

1 Peter 1:3-5
3</sup> Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, ⁵ who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

So, I am excited to now make October 19th Summer's "spiritual" birthday!  Next year at this time we will definitely have to find some fun way to celebrate :)
 
My biggest prayer for my kids has always been (and will continue to be for Colton) that they would come to know their Savior at an early age and live for him.  I want to see my babies in heaven forever!!  Now, my prayer for Summer has changed.  Now each time I pray for her, I thank the Lord that Summer is saved, and I ask that she would continue to grow in his ways and live for him all her life.

Amen!