Everything changes in a minute

 The power of a minute...

 "Everyone has a moment in their childhood when the door opens to their future." -Wess Stafford

One minute. One moment in a lifetime of minutes. To many, one minute is unimportant, but to children that one minute defines the rest of their lives: who they are when they grow up, what they want to do, and who they want to be like. WE as their elders have the power to change a child's life in the space of 60 seconds. Now THAT'S a heavy responsibility to bare.

Children look up the adults in their lives. They look to us as role models, as teachers, in our every day lives. They watch us and learn from us. As little ones they are very impressionable. As Dr. Stafford put it, "they are like wet cement. The younger they are the easier it is to leave an imprint."  Though they may not realize it, they are constantly soaking up everything around them.

  Children grow up to become a replica of the kinds of elders they had in their lives when they were young. God intended for the elders in a child's life to pour into them, not tear them down. How we impact a child depends on how we interact with that child. We need to always remember any minute, anything we say or do, can be that moment that opens the door to the child's future.                                                                                                 When I see a child, I see one of God's precious children. I see His fingerprints in their lives. I see a child who needs love and affirmation. A little one who's life is only just beginning; who needs Godly influences in their life.When I see a child I feel the need to protect them, to love them, to show them that Someone cares for them. I feel the weight of God's call to all adults. Please, don't ignore His children. When you see a child be sure to pour into them, even if it's just a friendly smile or a kind word. You never know how much that simple act of love may impact them for all eternity. 

 "Start children off on the way they should go, 

and even when they are old they will not turn from it."

 Proverbs 22:6

"For the glory of God!"

.  

Let it rain!

   *Drip, drip, drip*  The rain falls steadily upon the window pane. It is a sound that calms and soothes many people, and excites others. But to me, it is the sound of His love falling upon my life. You see, when it rains we often think of the rain in the plural sense, ignoring the millions of individual drops. Yet, it is those very drops that make up the storm. It is the same way with our Father's love.

   Too often we take His blessings for granted and fail to thank Him for them. Then before we know it they're gone. Evaporated into our lives or blown away by the winds of change. Only the evidence of their having been there is left; the puddles that sit around waiting for us to acknowledge them.We sit there and wonder, "how did we miss the existence of that gift and how could it be gone already?? We only just noticed it." But that's just it. Like the rain, many blessings are only in our lives for a short season. Whether we notice each drop is up to us.

  

     Our Heavenly Father desires to grant us every blessing under the sun, but it is only when we remember to thank Him for each one, that He will keeps pouring His rain upon us.  So the next time your soul is parched, look to the heavens. The skies are ever ready to rain down His love upon us, we have only to learn to see the gifts. They are always there. Not every blessing is life changing. The most valuable gifts are often the smallest and most unnoticeable.

    

So open your eyes. Step out of the prison of ungratefulness and open your arms to the rain. Let the drops cleanse and refresh you. Dance in His love rain. Count the drops. But beware of the flood that is sure to come when you open your heart to thankfulness.

"Giving thanks always for all things unto God

 and the Father  in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ"

Ephesians 5:20 

 "For the glory of God!"