Kids, do you want to watch God paint the sky?

(Inside: We teach our kids to watch God paint the sky, and through it, we hope they learn to watch God paint in their lives.)

“Boys, do you want to watch God paint the sky?”

I needed to get out of the house.

The last ten days or so have been wretched. My husband’s work consumed him leaving me home along with our three boys and the stomach flu bug.

About three days in, I decided my no-video-games-and-cartoons-except-for-weekends rule was dumb, and we flipped on the TV like parched desert wanderers gulping down water. It stayed on for five days straight. Until I hated the noise and declared again my hate for television as I pressed off.

But here I am today, tired of washing sheets, disinfecting the house, and seeing my kids so sick.

As the walls of my house closed in on me, I piled my kids in the car to escape.

With stomachs that had finally settled, we picked up shamrock shakes and drove to the frozen lake by our home.

We parked our car and to watch God paint the sky.

It was a little too cloudy and golden rays didn’t quite dance across the sky as I wished, but the boys still loved it. All three piled into the front seat and we had a lively conversation about side airbags and the front seat’s ability to lean all the way back.

I didn’t say any profound words about God, we simply, between messing with the car, watched Him do his artwork.

But what I loved most was how the next morning, they paused in their playing to notice how spectacular the sunrise was from our living room window.

And later in the day, my three-year-old asked if we could go again to watch God paint the sky. Yes, of course, baby… Then, a few days later, my youngest snuck down in the early morning to find me sitting at my computer. He whispered that I should come upstairs and look at the sunset (sunrise).

I’ve learned that one way for me to refuel is through looking for the everyday sacred.

It’s an intentional pause and opening my eyes, even if it only lasts for a split second. (Because, mommas, that’s all the time we have.)

But, hearing my kids talk about painting the sky days after taught me struck me as a life-lesson. Our kids – their little hearts long for God too.

So I hope this-get-out-of-the-house-survival-mode-act planted a seed to not just see watch the artwork of God in nature. But, to see him working specifically in other ways.

Because, boys, God isn’t just painting the sky, he’s also painting the pages of your lives.

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Elijah’s my favorite. Elijah’s the Old Testament Prophet who went head-to-head with the Baal prophets to show who the One True God was. (Read more about that here.)

This man who experience God’s supernatural power, later found himself in complete despair, with shaken faith, depressed and anxious, trying to hear God’s voice. (Have you been there too?) 1 Kings 19:11-13 says:

The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

When Elijah looked for God, he found Him. And God’s voice wasn’t in the wind, earthquake, or fire – it was in a gentle whisper.

Momma’s, God still speaks to us today. It’s deep inside of you, an inner knowing. I’d love for you to join me as I learn to discern that voice smack in the middle of my ordinary days.

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I wrote this article a few years back, but, friend – this is my current chapter in parenting…

You just dropped your kid off at practice, picked up another, and are trying to decide what to make for dinner. Your days are filled with work, parenting, and waiting for password reset emails.

You are parenting tweens and teens.

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Cheryl Donely

Cheryl is a mom of 3 boys, wife, speaker, high school teacher, and author of Empowered Moms & Kids. She has a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and is passionate about learning and teaching. On www.empoweredmomsandkids.com you’ll find inspiration and encouragement for moms raising tweens and/or teens. Read more in the “about” section of this page.