I Wan' it!

Wow! I can't believe that Alethia has just turned one last week. It seems like a few weeks ago I was that Dad that so feared being able to raise a child. I was in such bad shape that I could not even bear to look at my wife in her first three months of pregnancy. I don't want you to think that I am proud of this, but more to realize the distance that I have come. Yes, my wife is amazing. She puts up with me.

As I was stating earlier, Alethia has just turned one. She has gone from being the little baby that came home from the hospital that could only cry when she wanted something to insisting in a very slurred statement, "I wan' it!"

When her Nana was visiting her the other day, she was really desirous of the ice in Nana's glass. She got frustrated because Nana was not giving it to her. With much angst and frustration in her voice she said, "I WAN' IT!" So what did Nana do? She gave her what she wanted. If that had been me, we might have had vision of Randi saying to me ... "Does she need everything she wants?"

I guess I tend to agree with Randi because I had another interesting experience the other day that involved my often curious daughter. Ali likes to visit us in the bathroom. For anybody that has had a little one, you can remember that they like to follow you around the house. While I was in there, not generally paying attention, Ali found something to play with. As I looked around, I found her taking a ribbon that she had been playing with and dipping it in the toilet. About the time I noticed, she had dropped it and had started splashing the water trying to retrieve the ribbon.

Of course, my first inclination was, "Oh, that's gross!" I, however, recovered and rescued Ali's ribbon and her from the potty. Only Ali did not want to be rescued from the potty. She resisted and although she did not say, "I wan' it," her body language spoke these words in volume.

While Ali has no understanding that playing in the potty is really bad for her health, she does understand that it is fun. I don't know about you but I keep tripping up on this same principle in my life. I guess that is why I write about it so much. I guess that the irony is that I know the potty is dirty! I know that it can make me sick, but I keep saying, "I wan' it."

Don't you think that God looks at that those disgusting behaviors and says, "Oh, that's gross," but allows us to play in the potty anyway? Uhmm, I can't parent like God. Maybe the biggest difference is that God knows that we know it is not good. Ali does not. She can shout that she wants it, but will eventually learn that not everything we want is good for us.

Randi and I have pledged to try to lead a life that questions the "I wan' it" attitude. We want our lives to reflect sacrifice and service to others. Just my opinion but if you find yourself saying, the word BUT there is probably an "I wan' it" or "I deserve it" following.

If you want to have a close relationship with anybody, you have to listen. If you want to have a close relationship with God you have to listen. In order to listen, the "I wan' it" or "I deserve it" must go away. The big BUT must be lost. God desires a close relationship with me, but will probably not sidle up to me as long as I choose to play in the potty. When I stop saying "BUT, I wan' it," start listening, a relationship with God can begin.