Best Bits: Hannah's Confession

I started writing about this a while ago, more than six months after the confession, but it's definitely a Best Bit, not just of our time in Haiti last summer, but in my life as a parent.

And then, while we were enjoying a leisurely breakfast recently (girls were off school - again - because of snow) and Storly and I were discussing the good and bad points about the previous night's live Creation vs Evolution debate between Ken Ham and Bill Nye (watch it on YouTube here...), Hannah asked a corker of a question: "When did I become a Christian?"

The conversation that followed gives more meat to this 'story' and it gives just a little more (actually, a lot more) joy to this mama's heart. And I asked Hannah if she's happy with me sharing this with you, and she is.

Back to the confession. We were driving along some road around Cap-Haitien. I've forgotten the exact details of the moment, but haven't forgotten the significance. But obviously the activities we'd been involved in over the previous weeks in Haiti were having an impact on our girls, Hannah especially.

Waiting with the Dynamic Women in Missions team
(led by Kim Burdick and Sharon Mishler) for a briefing before heading out to
all four corners of Fossé Capois village. By the way, these ladies are AWESOME!
Plenty more stories to share about their time with us.

Some parts of the village were a long walk from the church. A long walk. 

Hannah and Esther were getting a much better understanding of what we 'do', especially as we were focused on working alongside local churches to go and talk with people in their communities, rural villages mostly, about Jesus, and leave them with a solar radio tuned to Radio 4VEH.

Our first day of radio distribution, in Dubout near Limonade,
and Esther learns how to peel cashew nuts. Cool! Read more about that day here

Hannah and Esther have heard us speak about it on many occasions, and they can both give their own versions of what we do and what is this ministry we're involved in (it's fascinating to see them absorbing information, understanding it, and then making it their own...).

And then as we were bouncing along the road, recounting one of these days of sharing the Gospel and giving out radios, Hannah responded with this:

"I can hardly remember a time when I didn't love Jesus."

And my heart just about burst with joy. For us as parents, this is our greatest desire for Hannah and Esther, that they would know, love and follow Jesus. That's it. Everything else I desire for them - to do well at school, be healthy and happy, to love each other, to be generous, to speak with British accents (no chance of that one) - comes way below the Jesus desire.

So when she asked the question over breakfast, I reminded her of what she'd said in Haiti. And again, at bedtime on a special day for me (25 years since I made a decision to follow Jesus, read about that here), as I told the girls why it was a special day for me, and Hannah responded by saying that she loved Jesus before she could even read or write.

So, I answered her question "When did I become a Christian?" by reminding her what she had said, "I can hardly remember a time when I didn't love Jesus" and "I loved Jesus before I could even read or write!"

And then she said this: "Yes, yes! You see, I think I was born to love Jesus."

And there's the answer to the biggest questions in life, the 'why am I here?' kinds of questions, out of the mouth of an eight-year-old. Born to love Jesus.

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P.S. I found this article by Pastor Brian Croft on the Gospel Coalition website very helpful in answering the question 'Is her faith/confession for real or is she just saying what she thinks we want to hear?'