Last night we went to the mall. It was a family outing. As we walked into the mall we turned into the first store, because we had gone there for a specific purpose.
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Somehow, Joey missed us turning into the store, and continued walking into the mall.
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We'd been there for probably 4 or 5 minutes, talking with the salesperson, when I noticed Joey wasn't with us. Joey is a quiet kid, and he flies under the radar a lot.
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Joey is really into electronics, so I figured he was probably wandering around the store inspecting everything, but he wasn't. So I went out into the mall and started calling his name. I looked down further and saw him walking around crying.
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I ran to him and hugged him. He looked up into my face and the first thing he said to me is, "Mom--I forgot to listen."
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As I looked into his sweet face, his eyes brimming with tears, my heart swelled with love for this child of mine. I was so happy to have him with me.
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I've been thinking about his words to me all day today, "Mom, I forgot to listen." I want my kids with me always. I want them near me, and I want to be able to help them. I think that must be how our Heavenly Father feels about us. But sometimes we forget to listen. We let the distractions of the world cause us to lose our focus. We find ourselves wandering. And then often we find ourselves in tears, crying out for our Heavenly Father.
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I'm so thankful to know He's always there for me. That He loves me unconditionally, even when my focus wanders. That despite all of my inadequacies and short-comings, He looks into my tearful eyes, forgives in an instant, and fills me with His love.
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And I hope I can remember to listen.
12 comments:
How scary! I'm glad you found Joey safe and sound. Thank you for turning it into a learning experience for all of us who read your blog.
Great analogy Wendi!
Losing a little one is the WORST feeling ever...I am CONSTANTLY losing Faisal...he is my wandering child. So glad that you found Joey, that is a sweet analagy.
I'm so happy that it all turned out well.
I appreciate your gentle reminder. Sometimes I hear, but don't really listen. I need to remember.
Thanks for sharing! What a sweet thought!
What would we ever do without Joeyissms?
That's an awesome lesson! It brought me to tears, it's so true.
I'm glad your little boy was OK!
What a great lesson for all of us! It's so easy to hear only the noise and confusion around us, and overlook that still small voice.
Just the post I needed.
Danke!
That can be so scary when you can't find your child, but so sweet what he said. I sometimes forget to listen too, so what a good reminder to remember to listen. Thanks!
Love Ya
We all forget that to err is human. It is our errors and corrections that make us better people. Poor little Joey! I am glad he was safe!
I appreciate this post....thank you!...for the reminder!
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