The Metamorphosis of My Little Girl's Prayer

We just got home from Bounce Town with the Children's Ministry from church. As always, a fun time had by all. It was just me and the kids; Waylan stayed home with a headache.

When we drove up in the drive way Justine saw Waylan's truck and said, with excitement, "Daddy's home!" I said, "Yes, remember Daddy doesn't feel good." She immediately brought her folded hands up to her face, closed her eyes and prayed, "God, thank you for make my daddy feel better."

Now, this is the format of all her prayers. "Make my daddy feel better" was actually a request, not a praise. But her wording, as with all her prayers, makes it sound like a praise. For example, last week she prayed, "God, thank you for my grandma's arm not work." Of course she was praying for God to heal her but it she didn't spit it out that way.

When she was a baby I began praying with her before putting her down to sleep in her crib at night. She couldn't talk and didn't know what I was talking about but I would whisper a prayer in her ear every night. Over time, when she began to talk, that evolved into her copying what I say as a means of teaching her "how" to pray. Over the past year she has begun to pray all on her own. I must say, she prays with a thankful heart versus a "to do list" for God as many adults pray (myself included, I confess).

So, I've been thinking that she has been praying "wrong" using 'thank you' before a request. I've been wondering how I should go about teaching her how to pray "right". But tonight, after listening to her request for her Daddy, I thought about her prayers from a different perspective. What if we all prayed like that? It's almost as if she is thanking God in advance for the prayers He is going to answer. Who am I to say her prayer is wrong? That's a prayer of faith that God is bigger than we are...and He is! Ah, the wisdom of a 3 year old. This is something to ponder! My prayers may sound a little different in the ears of the Father tonight.