Recently, after singing the first verse of a hymn during a church service, I heard my six-year-old son’s voice start singing. It wasn’t the same words we were singing because it wasn’t a familiar hymn to him. He had listened to the first verse to learn the tune. Then he started singing his own version of a hymn went something like this: “Oh God, you are so good to me! You give me cookies! And I love cookies! So I know you love me so much! And I love you, too! Oh, thank you God for giving me cookies!” With each verse he continued to sing his own praises to God about cookies! What joy he had! What absolute love was in his voice as he sang! He didn’t care that he didn’t know the words to the song. All he knew was he was happy, and that God had made him happy over something as simple as cookies.
Now, you might think that my son just loves cookies. But there is more to the story then that. Each week before Sunday School starts, a member of our church sets out cookies in our church kitchen for the children (and maybe a few adults!) to snack on. That particular Sunday when we arrived there were no cookies. He was very sad as he headed back to class since he missed out on his weekly sweet treasure. But after class, he walked by the kitchen and guess what he saw? There were cookies! Apparently that week we had arrived before the person who sets out the cookies and we missed out on the cookies before Sunday School. When my son saw the cookies after, he was overjoyed! And he was still full of this joy when we went to worship service; thus why he decided to sing a song of praise to God about cookies.
Hearing my son sing about God loving him by giving him cookies made me think. How often have we prayed God would deliver something to us and it didn’t happen on our time scale? We get upset. We get mad at God. We question why he would do this. Some people might even doubt God’s existence.
Yet, we need to really think about what God has promised to do for us. God does what is best for us and all is given to us according to His will.
So, do we praise God even when we aren’t getting what we think we should have? God’s word says: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord. “Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11.
How often might God say, “I am not giving you what you are praying for today because I have different plans for you?” How often do we praise God, even when we think we aren’t getting our prayers answered? How often do we realize that God has plans different than ours and praise him in all circumstances? Do we also praise him because things might not happen as fast as we think they should? And how often do we thank God for all that He does give us? And what about the gift of eternal life? Isn’t that what we should be happiest about?
Think back to my six-year-old and the song of praise he sang to God about cookies. He loves God, and still would have loved God even if he hadn’t gotten cookies that week. But think about the extra joy that God gave him by waiting to let him have cookies at a time he didn’t expect it! And what joy we will have when we are in Heaven! Isn’t that a bigger joy than any cookie we can get?
I know this; I won’t look at cookies the same way again! Who would have thought I could have learned such a great lesson about God from my six-year-old and a box of chocolate chip cookies? Download
