I have decided....

Janelle and Janine's favourite car-ride entertainment is to choose a song to sing, and then sing it together over and over again. Even little Josiah (who can barely talk) who is seated in between his two sisters would attempt to sing along together with them. 

During one of our car journeys, the girls were trying to decide on a song to sing. Finally, Janelle decided that she wanted to sing the song "I have decided to follow Jesus", which goes like this:

I have decided to follow Jesus

I have decided to follow Jesus

I have decided to follow Jesus

No turning back, no turning back

We all (Josiah included) sang the song loudly and with great gusto. I decided to ask the girls some questions to see if they understood the lyrics of the song.

Me: "When you get older, and if your friends decide that they don't want to follow Jesus, will you still follow Him?"

Janine (confidently): "Yes I will follow Jesus."

Janelle: "I think so. Yes I will follow Jesus."

I felt a bit of pride swelling up in me as I heard them proclaim their allegiance to Christ. After all, as Christian parents, we desire for our children to grow up loving God and serving Him isn't it? Before I could say anything else, Janelle then popped the million-dollar question: 

"But mummy, where is Jesus going??"

Even though I burst out laughing (it was so funny at that point in time), I felt that her question was a very relevant one. After all, in a child's mind, you need to know where Jesus is going if you are to follow Him! Hence, I tried to explain that when we say we are following Jesus, we are actually following the ways of Jesus - ie. loving people around us, loving and obeying God, being kind to others, etc. We are not actually following Jesus to get to a physical place, but we are following the ways of Jesus. 

Janelle at 6-years-old could understand what I was talking about, but 4-year-old Janine probably couldn't fully grasp what I was trying to say. At this age children are still very literal in their thinking and cannot quite grasp metaphors or imagery. I can only trust that these nuggets of truth that are deposited in their hearts will one day impact and transform their lives as they mature.

This simple question has challenged me: "Where is Jesus going?" 

I know that in following Jesus, we are headed heavenward. We are not just citizens of a country here on earth, but we are truly citizens of heaven. Am I following the ways of Jesus and living my life as though it is merely temporal on earth?