Last night our 6 year-old daughter was helping me fix dinner for the family.  She was standing on her stool at the kitchen counter helping me fix plates and let out a deep sigh and said, “It’s a hard day.”  I stopped what I was doing and immediately looked to see the expression on her face since this was an unusual thing for her to say.  I inquired, “Why has it been such a hard day?” Bracing myself for a tale of getting picked on at school or something like that, she simply and sweetly said, “I’m tired and ready to go to bed.”

I was relieved and shocked to hear this from the child who never wants to go to bed.  There of course was the temptation to say, “Oh honey, you don’t even know the half of what a hard day is.”  But of course we don’t say things like this to young children…and should exercise the same caution in our response to people of all ages.  The innocence and sincerity in her statement made me long for the days when being tired was the only thing that made for a hard day.  Her statement was also a reminder of the reasons why my wife and I seek to protect our children from the realities of the world we live in that are unnecessary for a 6 year-old to know about.

Her simple statement also reminded of the realities of hard times that so many face.  Over the years I have helped build and run a number of church websites.  Without fail, the hottest topic on every site is “why do bad things happen to good people.”  On our little website a simple publication by Bruce McLarty is our most viewed item year after year – “Why Does God Let Bad Things Happen To Us?”

Her deep sigh was also a gentle reminder to me about the need to always be careful with my response when those around me express frustration, disappointment, or hardship.  In my mind I might be thinking “What’s the big deal?” but to that person it may be a very big deal.  We would probably all do well to cut everyone a bit of extra slack in this crazy and busy world that we live in.

This week our Dinnertime Devotionals series looks at the injustices committed on Joseph.  Talk about someone who got a ‘raw deal.’  The text is an encouragement and challenge for us to bring glory to God no matter where we find ourselves in life. >>> Dinnertime Devotionals 16