Oh, Lord, yesterday in kindergarten he learned that birds sometimes go hungry in the winter. He got off the bus with a little packet of bird seed and marched straight out to the backyard, sprinkling the seed on the patio.
And Lord, then he stood there and chirped. With all his might, at the top of his lungs, he stood there and yelled "tweet" at those birds, hoping to lure them to their dinner.
I know You must have seen him. Were You laughing up in Heaven as hard as I was laughing in my kitchen?
There was a sigh or two in my laughter as I watched him. His little heart is so tender, and he so desperately wanted to convince the birds to come and feast. And the louder he "tweeted" the further they flew, of course, and OH, how he wanted them to understand. My heart melts into a puddle at his sweetness, Lord, but it aches at knowing that he’ll face many times of pouring his heart into something that may fail. It’s more than a mother’s heart can bear, really.
Please watch him for me, Lord. When he’s all grown up and too far away for me to see him from my kitchen window, please watch him, help him and encourage him.
Please keep his heart tender, and keep it safe.
Rocks In My Dryer 
What a sweet prayer! My daughter came in the other day with tears in her eyes that there was a dead bird in the backyard. Daddy didn’t have a chance to remove him that night, so the next day, I saw her in the backyard ‘talking’ to the little dead bird. She wouldn’t tell me what she had been telling the little dead bird, but I can just imagine what her tender little heart was telling him. It is times like these that you wish you could keep them small forever.
Oh, that was so, so sweet…what a precious scene you painted for me and what a precious prayer!
This is such a sweet post. I really feel your mama’s heart for him!
I’ve been frequenting your blog for a few days, and I really like what you have here! You are now in my favorites.
That was so touching. I experience the same thing with my boys… their tender hearts. May they always stay that way!
A precious story and a powerful prayer.
Amen
I have two who would do that. So sweet.
What a great sermon illustration (sorry, I”m a pastor’s wife)
But can’t you see it as an analogy of Jesus– God becoming one of us so He could try to “tweet” in our language and make us see the “feast” of eternal life that He has offered us?
~Leslie
He will be just fine. I would have done the exact same thing. I still have an incredible tenderness in my heart for animals.
*sniff, sniff* Perfect prayer! I share it for my little ones as well!
And, I was thinking the same as the pp…how loud does Jesus have to “tweet” to get our attention and bring us to the Feast? 🙂
I feel the same way when I watch my little guy “keep the sheep safe”. Of course, then he goes and shoves his little sister, but for that moment. . .
Oh, Shannon, you made me cry. I pray the same things about my children. It’s heartbreaking to think that someday, they could be hurt or disappointed and I might not be there to see and comfort them, so I pray that they’ll know God is always there.
/Sniff
How sweet. Encourage his sweetness and tender-heartedness. In this world of hard-hearted people we desparately need him!
This brought tears to my eyes! What a sweetheart.
What a sweet, funny boy you have. Definitely worthy of a prayer of thanks!
that is precious!
I love catching those moments.
Blessings,
Karla
how wonderfully sweet. the challenge will be to make sure that his heart remains tender as he grows older…even when the birds seem to be flying further away.
we need more hearts like his in this world!
Oh no! Poor little sensitive boy! It’s just heartbreaking to watch as they discover how cruel this life can be at times. So difficult to step back and let them discover God’s Plan for all living things. Sigh. I think my littles are more sensitive about God’s creatures than humans sometimes.
My youngest daughter has a tender heart too and loves animals- and they love her too-they respond so positively to her-our cat adores her and so does our friend’s beagle(who moves in with us while his family is away). You have never heard such howling as when this beagle sees her, and he keeps howling for a long time because he is so excited to see her. I hope your tenderhearted son will always be that way!
*sniffle* So, so sweet Shannon. What a tender hearted little guy you have there.
How precious! That really does touch a mother’s heart.
As I read your story, I couldn’t help but think of how similiar it is to God chasing after us. He does everything possible to bring us to Himself. Sometimes we come to Him and “feast” and other times we go our own way. I’m a visual person, so I love analogies like these.
Prayers as such are uttered around our place too. Mainly the keep him/her safe bit.
Going to go cry now… and then say another prayer for my children that they will be under His care always.
Precious! Enjoyed your blog. Have bookmarked you. Blessings, Donna
That is the sweetest thing I’ve ever read!
Your sweet little story made me cry. Don’t you love the pure innocence of his tender little heart? Love the child and love the Mommy who appreciates her son. Is he the one you said was like “Eeyore”? He may just be very sensitive and serious about things. He sounds precious.
What a sweet tenderhearted boy God has given you. HE will watch out for that little heart, may your little man always be aware of those in need who need help. So sweet!!
that is the sweetest funniest thing I have ever heard. Thanks for the laugh!
I have a little guy that reminds me of yours and oh how my heart aches the same way!
My oldest son is serious, sensitive, and sweet – it is such a hard part of motherhood to watch him learn (slowly I hope) what the real world is like and to try to keep his ideal vision of things alive.
God bless these boys – the world needs them!
Lovely, lovely post; I really enjoyed it. Your son reminds me very much of my own son as a child. He is a man now and a Children’s Minister for a church in SC.
What a sweet, enchanting and poingnant post. I can clearly see in my mind’s eye the image of a young boy with hat, scarf and birdseed, standing on a porch and chirping with all his might. Thank you so much for sharing this with us all.
How precious!
That just melted my heart! I can just see him out there tweeting and the birds flying away! Of course I can’t see his face. But I can see him tweeting.
Oh, Amen! My son has such a tender soul, and I was just thinking that the other day.
Whooo boy. That is a mama’s prayer. That is MY prayer.
Oh that is just too sweet. Poor little guy.
*Sighs* with tears in my eyes…I too have a kindergarten boy…talk about capturing those precious moments and pondering them and tucking them away in our hearts. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
This tugs at my heart. The hardest part of parenting is letting go, and seeing reality catch them unawares. I cry out to God, and He answers. “Keep them thender, God, and keep me tender, too!”
~TaunaLen
Wonderfully well-written…the last sentence is exactly what I ask regarding my tender-hearted son as well.
This is beautiful!
That post brought tears to my eyes! THAT is a Chicken Soup submission if ever I saw one!
What a precious story!