There are 3 things that just melt my heart when my children do them and if it melts my heart then I’m sure it will also touch my heavenly Father’s heart when I do the same for him.
1. Say Thank you
My 2 year old has the best manners of anyone I know. And honestly I have no idea how she learnt this. I’m pretty certain it’s not from listening to her older brother and sister who I often remind to say “please” and “thank you”. And I haven’t changed my parenting style, so it’s not me either.
But I can tell you that hearing “Thank you Mummy” without being prompted fills my heart with joy. And it’s the simple, small things that she thanks me for. I give her a piece of bread for lunch “Thank you Mummy”. I get her down from her seat “Thank you Mummy”. And you know she even sometimes says it when things don’t quite go her way.
How God’s heart must swell when we thank him in a similar way for all the daily gifts he gives, running water, fresh food to eat, clothes to wear, fresh air to breath, a beautiful sunset, sunshine. I can only imagine how it must give him joy when we remember to thank him. Imagine thanking him when he hasn’t given us what we ask for, because we trust his decisions and know he wants what is best for us!
Ann Voskamp in her book “One Thousand Gifts” talks about the life changing effects of practising gratitude daily and noticing every small and wonderful thing that God gives us. She talks about the immense joy that comes when she is thankful. And the disappearance of stress and fear when she remembers all the ways God has been good to her and faithful in the past.
So being thankful swells God’s heart and give me joy – it’s just a no-brainer really. The hard bit is remembering to do it.
See here for more reasons to be thankful.
2. Play Nicely
Watching my 3 children play nicely together today on the trampoline made me so happy.
It filled me with joy. All those tough mothering moments are worth it in moments like these.
God must feel like this too. Watching his children get along must fill his heart with so much joy and make all those heartbreaking times worth it.
3. Say I Love You
I love it when my little 2 year old comes and hops in my bed in the morning with a big grin and a cuddle to match.
I bet God loves it too when we run to him first thing in the morning and offer our heart of love to him.
One of the best things in the world is when my children tell me they love me – out of the blue and for no apparent reason. That’s when I know they really mean it.
So 3 simple things that I think would put a huge smile on God’s face are: be thankful, play nicely, and love Him.
Oh, and I just thought of a 4th way to put a BIG smile on God’s face… but it’s not easy. Simple maybe, but not easy.
It’s obedience.
I love it when my children do what I ask, when I ask. And God who knows all and has a perfect plan for our lives would love it I’m sure if we did what he asked, when he asked. Obeying what Jesus taught in the bible and obeying those God nudges in our heart can be hard, but I’m sure it makes God so so happy when we do obey.