December 7, 2006

One of my little family's Christmas traditions is reading the book "One Wintry Night" by Ruth Bell Graham. It is the Christmas story; however, it is the complete story of Jesus, from creation to resurrection. I started reading it to Kaila when she was 3. Of course, she loved the illustrations, and I had to do a lot of explaining at that age. Kaila has such a sweet heart and has always been interested in talking about and learning about Jesus. I even remember when she was a little over 3, and when we were leaving church one Sunday morning, she said, "Momma, I didn't see Jesus this morning," and you could tell she was a little upset! Anyways, the Christmas before Kaila turned 5, Daron and I knew Kaila was probably getting close to making a very important decision. She had been asking about Jesus coming into her heart, and we would tell her that she would know when it was time, trying our best to tell her what we could but also to let the decision be hers. We started reading our book right after Thanksgiving, and Daron and Kaila would do a Christmas devotional each night. On night, December 7, 2006 to be exact, we had just finished reading, and Kaila walked off. Next thing I know, she came running to me and said, "Momma, I'm ready to ask Jesus into my heart!" Well, I just started shaking because I knew this was the moment we had prayed for since she was born. So, in her room, and with a little book to go through with her about what she was doing, Kaila asked Jesus into her heart! We were thrilled, and the smile on her face was BEAUTIFUL! This summer, Kaila was baptized, and it was a wonderful day as well. Kaila loves the Lord and here recently has even been saying she is ready to tell others about Jesus. As a matter of fact, she made a sign to hold up at the end of our driveway; it said, "Kaila's Bible Stories." She wanted so bad for someone to stop so she could read a story from her Bible! That involved another conversation to explain why no one would stop!