Ticket

My grand children bring me so much joy, I simply love being in their presence. The four-year-old is a little stocky fellow with an infectious hearty laugh; he is rambunctious and fearless, with a beautifully kind spirit.  The five-year-old is about an inch taller than his brother but smaller in statue; he is more reserved and constantly looking out for his little brother.  He's calm, thoughtful and has what I would call an ole soul. 

One day after picking them up from daycare, I decided to stop at a local Wal-Mart to pick up a few items for home.  Before we went into the store, I decided to give them each a certain amount of money to buy something for themselves.  I wanted to use this opportunity to teach them a little something about the value of money.  I explained to them that this was all the money they had and that they couldn't spend any more then I had given them.  They both listened intently from the back seat, echoing, "yes ma'am" in unison, but I wasn't sure that they understood.

As I unbuckled them from their car seats to get them out the car, the four-year-old dropped one of his dollar bills on the ground, the wind immediately grabbed it and was blowing it across the parking lot.  He took off after the money, his little stubby legs taking him as fast as he could go, screaming to the top of his husky voice, my ticket, my ticket, I dropped my ticket. I was a little puzzled at first but knew he was referencing the money as a ticket.  I wanted to be sure so as he picked up the money, I asked him, baby, what is that you have in your hand, he replied, “my tickets.”  I chuckled and proceeded into the store holding their hands, thinking; that was the cutest, most innocent thing a child could say.

Once in the store, I never used the word money.  When we arrived at the much-anticipated toy aisle, they took their time looking over every toy, I mean, every toy, down every aisle and back again.  They would show me a toy that they wanted and I would say, “How many tickets do you have?” they would reply with how many tickets they had and I would respond, “How many tickets does it cost,” while pointing to the price of the item, then counting with my fingers past the number of tickets they had.  

To my surprise they neither whined nor complained if they did not have enough tickets to purchase a toy.  They would simply put the toy back on the shelf and go to the next one, or I would suggest something else.

Philippians 4:11 New King James Version (NKJV)
“Not that I speak in regard to need, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content”

I am fairly content with what I have, but there are occasions that I am not as composed as my grand children were, especially when I don't have enough tickets to get what I want.  Reluctantly, I admit that on occasion there is some whining and complaining on my part.  

Watching my grand children that evening, making decisions without throwing tantrums, based on what they had to work with was humbling. I ended up buying toys that cost way more than the amount of tickets they had.  I think if they had whined and complained I would have gotten the higher priced toys just to keep them quiet, but it felt so much better, and it did my heart so much good to know that I was getting them something that they knew they didn’t have enough tickets to buy, simply because they were content working with what they had.

It is my prayer that I can be more like my grand children when it comes to tickets.  Working with what God has blessed me with, without whining and complaining, allowing God to tame my desire for more stuff and things that I don't need.  Scripture says that the Lord will supply all of our needs according to His riches in Glory by Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19).  My desire is to be patient and wait on God to bless me to have some of the things I want and if He doesn’t allow me to have them, then I pray that I will be like my grand children and not whine and complain.

Much Love

Melissa

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