Taking notes...

A couple of years ago I got in the habit of taking notes in church. If we're honest, it was a last ditch effort for me to actually pay attention instead of zoning out and thinking all the thoughts I had that were completely unrelated to the word of God.

You know...

Holy cow, why is that kid screaming?
Does she know her shirt is untucked in the back?
How is she so skinny - she has seven kids?!?!
How much longer is he going to talk?
Where should we eat for lunch?
Do the kids have Sunday school today?
What do we need from Target?

Clearly, Jesus things.

So, I made a commitment to taking notes and once again, I have discovered that when I make a commitment to Him, He outdoes Himself with his commitment to ME. It's like in college - the more I paid attention in class (or even just attended) the better my grades were - and while we don't get graded in life, the more I take notes, the more I understand, the better I live out the word. I invest in Him and not surprisingly, He invests right back in me.

As Emersyn has gotten older she, too, has requested a "journal" for church once again reminding me that she is watching. She pays attention to what I write down and sometimes she copies me word for word and then sometimes she writes her own interpretation of mass. She asks me questions and wants to know what I wrote down. She draws pictures and tries to get Landry to do the same. 

She is taking notes. 

Her relationship with Christ is lead by relationship with Christ. Just as mine was impacted by my parents. My faith has guided me through grief, forgiveness, pain and sadness -  because of my faith I try to turn the question of "why me" into "why not me" during those moments of hard that jump in-between the moments of mundane. My prayer is that her faith (along with her siblings) will do the same - jump up in the mundane and guide through the moments of hard.

Because she is taking notes. 

When I listen.

When I ignore.

When I write down the word.

When I pray out loud. 

When I praise Him.

When I trust Him.

And all the times I don't.

I decided to take notes to help me pay attention in church without realizing that she would be paying attention to me. 

She is taking notes, so I better make sure that my actions are noteworthy.