How gorgeous are these little cuties?!

Okay I admit it, I’m just a tad biased!

These are my two children approximately 14 years ago – around about the time that the vision for Footprints was first conceived.

I chose to share this picture with you because the Footprints Team have recently been discussing the stories of our children’s salvations and experiences with God, and it got me thinking … how wonderful it would be if we could encourage each other with the stories of our children’s salvations! (To read a story from our WA rep, Narelle, about her children, click here).

So here’s the story from my two little (okay, both are taller than me!) munchkins!

When Mr 17 was about 3 he woke up from his afternoon nap and toddled out to the family room, looking very distressed. He climbed onto my lap and I asked him what was wrong.

“But mummy,” he said, “Jesus isn’t living in my heart!”

So I asked him if he would like Jesus to live in his heart and led him through a simple prayer there and then.

I’ve always wondered what instigated this conversation. It was around Easter time and I think they had been talking a lot about Jesus’ death and resurrection at Sunday School, so that may have been behind it. Or maybe God just spoke to him?

Miss Not Quite 15 has never made a “decision” as such, but when she was also about 3 we were driving in the car one day and she asked me to turn the music down because “Jesus is talking to me”. 

After a couple of minutes of silence, I asked her what Jesus had said. “He said that He loves me,” she answered, in one of those how silly are you Mum? Isn’t it obvious?! type of voice!

She then started chatting to the doll in her lap. “Baby Nicholas, is Jesus living in your heart?” she asked, to which Baby Nicholas (with a voice remarkably like my daughter’s) answered “No!”.

My daughter then asked if Baby Nicholas would like to have Jesus in her heart, before praying with her doll. I’m assuming that to do that, my daughter already had Jesus living in her own heart … so precious. Needless to say I suspect our girl is a born evangelist!

Now they are almost fully grown, and I am waiting and praying for them to consolidate that decision now they are more mature. If I ask either of them, they will say that they have accepted Jesus, but as we all know, God doesn’t have any grandkids and I long for the day when they really grab hold of Jesus for themselves!

I get impatient sometimes, but then I remind myself that although I accepted the Lord at 13, I was 27 before I really started living it and developed a personal relationship with Him … I firmly believe that once Jesus has a hold on your heart, He never lets you go no matter how much you may try to run away from Him …

Would love to hear YOUR children’s salvation stories – if we get enough responses it might be worth turning it into a feature story in Footprints magazine!