The prayer life...

of my 4 year old! The other night I was laying with Brenly trying to get her to go to sleep and she said, "Ahem (with a little clearing of her throat) Don't you think you forgot something!" I looked at her and she said "you forgot to say your prayers" (we say them every night before bed, and I suppose that I didn't start them fast enough...but praise the Lord that she is so much in the habit that SHE reminded ME) so we start our prayers and we have always done the "Now I lay me, down to sleep..."prayer. And at the end we say, "God bless..." and believe me when I say WE BLESS EVERYBODY! If we have ever come in contact with you for ever a short period of time, she blesses you! Very recently I have started trying to teach her that we need to say prayers for other people...People that are sick, sad, hurting...people that are experiencing pain or loss...and people that are just in need of prayers in general! So after we blessed all of God' creation (literally) I told her that we needed to pray specifically for a few people (we are starting out small in hopes that she catches onto the idea! And good grief, by the times she gets the hang of that, we will have to get in bed by 7:00...to hopefully finish prayers by 10:00.)
So this was out very detailed conversation about praying for others..

Me: We need to pray for Abby because she is getting her tonsils out on Monday
Bren:Yes, Yes lets pray for her
Me: we are praying for her
Bren: (appalled)Mommy, you DID NOT say Dear Jesus...
Me: (trying to hold back the laughter-oblige to her request and start) Dear Jesus, please be with Abby as she gets her tonsils out on Monday. Make her brave. Be with the doctors that help her and make sure she gets better real soon. And be with her mommy and daddy that they survive (Don't worry Jill...I've been prayin for you like crazy too!)...and then I paused...
Me: and now we need to pray for Baylee (my niece who had a real bad sick weekend)
Bren: (interrupting me before I could get Baylee's name out...again appalled...You DID NOT say AMEN!
ME: I didn't say Amen because we weren't through praying...
Bren: But we were through praying for Abby
Me: okay, AMEN! and now we need to pray for Baylee that Jesus would make her better
Bren: Yes, Yes, let's pray for her too!
ME: we ARE praying for her
Bren: (flabbergasted that I can't get this prayer thing down right)"YOU DID NOT SAY DEAR JESUS!!!!"
Me: We do not have to say "Dear Jesus" every time...
Bren: Yes we do, he needs to know we are talking to him..
Me: okay, I am so sorry, "Dear Jesus, Please be with Baylee, make her better, let her mommy and daddy get sleep, etc...
Bren:"Ahem...you forgot"
Me: Sorry, AMEN! And now we need to pray for MiMi...she had a bad day and we need to pray that she has a better day tomorrow!
Bren:Just let me do it..."Dear Jesus, be with MiMi...she had a bad day...I think because she misses me! AMEN!"

So needless to say, I didn't get to bed until late...but Praise the Lord! I would much rather get NO sleep, knowing that my little girl has talked to Jesus...and He heard her, by golly...Because she said "Dear Jesus"