Do you ever have one of those moments when you interact with your child and just as you are feeling those normal "parent emotions," you realize that God must feel the same way about you?!?! Well, I have those moments A LOT!!!!!!!!!

Friday, Erich was standing in the rain waiting for the van to leave for Mexico. I heard him say, "We need to stop before we get on the road...." and being the helpful, and I guess pesty, mom that I am, I hollered at Erich and told him to come hop in the van and I would run him to our house so he could do what he needed to do before starting the long trip. I noticed that it took him a minute to hear me, but it never occurred to me that He was trying to ignore my voice! When he got in the van, he informed me that "I needed to stay out of things." He said, "We always stop, Mom. It was no big deal." Well, I felt defeated. I just wanted to help. I waited in the van while Erich ran in the house, and when he came out I noticed he had not only grabbed a bottle of water, but he had also been given one of Nick's tacos from Taco Bell. Erich seemed quite happy riding back over to the group preparing for their mission trip, and he did say thank you, but he never said he was sorry for being annoyed with me or that the trip to the house had actually benefitted him more than he thought it would. UGH! I was irritated.

Suddenly this thought went through my head, "Tammy, Tammy, Tammy, how many times have you been unhappy with the road I have taken you on and then later realized that the road had many blessings you had never expected or asked for?" "And Tammy, how many times have you said you were sorry?" Wow! I felt humbled at that moment. Humbled that so often I expect more out of my kids than God gets out of me.

Forgive me, Lord.

Yesterday, it happened again with my son Evan. His car is broken down at college in Morehead, and he has reached a point where he is tired of car trouble. His solution is to sell his car and look for something else. However, in his mind he thinks a motorcyle makes so much more sense than a car. He argues that the gas bill would be so much less. He says that he would find other ways to bring home his dirty laundry (gee, thanks). And he assures me that he would be careful when he drove it.

Sorry, Evan, but this dream won't be coming true.

See, his dad and I realize that he only has 2 years of driving experience. We understand that there is no such thing as a "fender bender" in a motorcycle accident. We know the dangers, and we feel that we know what is best for him at this time. Watching Evan's disappoint, though, is hard. He doesn't see what we see. As I think about his request and our answer, I again hear thoughts in my head, "Tammy, so many times you ask me for things that aren't good for you. Trust me. I am working. I know what is best."

Just as I long for Evan to see life from my angle, I know that God longs for me to see it from His!

Forgive me again, Lord.

My prayer is that I will recognize the"taco moments" in my life and that when I pray I will tell God I am sorry for the times I have complained about the journey to the taco. Also, I pray that as I ask for things from God, I will learn to be patient and understanding when His answer isn't "Yes" but instead it's "wait" or even "no."

My prayer for you is that You will hear God speaking in the circumstances of Your day-to-day life! Enjoy the "tacos"along the way and be thankful for the times when God doesn't immediately say "yes" to your requests. Our Father does know best!!!!!