THE BANTERING OF A FOUR YEAR-OLD

-by Nancy McDade

Today I took my 4 year old son to the grocery store. Usually I do the grocery shopping while he is at preschool but, because of all the snow last week, I had to delay shopping for food until today. I was a bit skeptical about taking him because he usually lasts about 10 minutes and, then...he is no longer excited about being at Wal-mart. As I briskly strolled the aisles, he sat in the grocery cart and slowly became just a head poking up above all the groceries that surrounded him in the cart. I tried to limit my purchases to the absolute necessity items instead of the entire list due to the accompanying "little friend". 

After the strolling ended and the must- haves were in the cart, we headed to the check-out line. The grocery clerk chuckled as she saw a little head, with eyes, peering out of the cart at her. As I placed each item up on the counter to be purchased, the clerk rang up the item and bagged it. Soon her "bagging area" was full. With items still in my cart, I proceeded to remove some of the bagged items and put those into the cart. One thing was making this difficult, my 4 year old son was taking up all the room in the cart. As a mom on a mission, I politely told my sweet little boy to "please get out of the cart so mommy can fit all the bags in." Low and behold, my son did not like this idea at all and so he started to protest (Who ever said kids go through "terrible 2's,” just wait until they are 4). 

Now don't get me wrong, most of the time my 4 year old is very easy going but, today was not one of those times. Finally, after much bantering back and forth, I got the groceries in the cart and headed out the door. I held my son's hand with one hand, and pushed the grocery cart with the other. Meanwhile he is trying to pull away, and is doing everything possible to make pushing a grocery cart next to impossible. 

(Little does he know that mommy is protecting him from oncoming cars in the parking lot and, at the same time, many of the groceries were purchased with him in mind.) His behavior actually worsened as I buckled him into his booster seat and then opened the back latch of the car to place the groceries in. Is this my "little angel" who turned and glared at me over the top of the back seat and proceeded to stick out his tongue, in anger, at me? (I am thankful that God gave me a sense of humor.) I am thinking to myself: you have got to be kidding me, he is sticking his tongue out at me. 

I didn't know if I should laugh or spank him. I wonder how often we act like my 4 year old. God is so patient. As we kick and fight to have our own way, He is patiently guiding us just as I guided my 4 year old through the parking lot today. As we think about "me, me, me" He has already thought about us. Just as my 4 year old had no idea that I was buying food with him in mind, God ALWAYS has our best interest in mind. I am so glad that God loves us and He thought of us 2000 years ago. When we were acting like selfish babies, He looked down on us with grace, mercy and compassion and provided a way for us. His name is Jesus. 

Just as a mom patiently corrects her child when he is making bad choices, God patiently waits on us. He does not try to force His will on anyone. Any good parent knows, sometimes you have to be firm and then just step back and wait. Do we give in when our child throws a fit? Do we think our fits can sway God? Do we stop loving our child when he throws a fit? Does God stop loving us? No, we always direct our child back to "the right" way to behave. God always directs us back to His word, the Bible. We don't change the rules just to appease our 4 year old who is not happy. God does not change His rules to appease us. 

In all of this, God loves us even when we act like spoiled babies. I am so thankful for that. At times God allows us to sit in "time out." It is usually in "time out" that we stop and think about our situation. 

What has God done in the past? Is God who He says He is? Can I really persuade God to change the rules for me? After we come to our senses, just like a child in time out, 

we get over ourselves and move on to what God told us to do in the first place. It is there that we find our calling, our purpose. It is there that we find peace. 

Nancy McDade / Contributing Writer for Food For Soul Magazine

Is a wife and mother of two boys, ages 7 and 4. She has been a registered nurse for 21 years and has worked in various areas including orthopedics, general medical, home healthcare, and pulmonary specialty.  She enjoys writing, reading, camping, and spending time with family.