spontaneous prayer, tristan style

we recently got over a very long, very difficult month where josh basically didn't have any work. we've had months like that before and they are always very faith building to say the least. anyhow, in the middle of that month, tristan and i visited our local health food store to buy the most amazingly delicious "healthified" ranch salad dressing ever created. i was thrilled when i discovered a brand to replace josh's old standby that he not only tolerates, but actually enjoys. josh won't touch a salad without ranch on it, so its pretty important at our house. anyhow we passed the popchips and tristan pretty much started drooling all over himself and asked me if we could please buy some chips. i just laid it all out for him and explained simply that daddy hadn't been working very much, so he wasn't making very much money, so it was important for us to only spend money on the things that make us big and strong and not on things that are just treats. he seemed happy with this explanation and i was thankful that he didn't ask me if daddy's salad dressing makes us big and strong.

a couple of weeks ago we were back in the store to pick up some locally grown oranges (there's nothing sweeter than oranges from this little town!) and this time tristan asked me, "daddy has been going to work more, right mommy?" i figured out right away where this little conversation was going, but i just said, "yes, he has!" and tristan asked, "mommy, do we have money today to buy me some chips?" chips were not on my grocery list that day, but i just had to say, "of course, tristan go ahead and pick out a bag of chips." before he even began to move in the direction of the chip display, he closed his little eyes, folded his hands to his chest and right there in the middle of the store, he prayed out loud, "Jesus? thank you for that daddy has been working so hard and thank you for that we have money now and can buy me some CHIPS! in Jesus name, amen." and then he picked out his favorite flavor and carried them to the checkout as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. part of me wanted to laugh and another part of me wanted to cry a little bit, because isn't that just the way it should be?

i know for myself that i tend to put my prayer time on a shelf and only go to it when i have the time and silence to best pour my heart out to God. wouldn't He so much more appreciate our spontaneous prayers, shared with him right at the moment when our heart is swelling with the emotion of what we are praying for? when a friend is hurting and we tell them, "i'll be praying for you" why not pray for them, with them at that very moment?

since that prayer for the chips, tristan has uttered other spontaneous prayers now and then, once for a friend who had just fallen off the monkey bars at the park, but mostly for things he is happy about. i love his childish faith and all that God is teaching me through my own children.

"From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise..." ~Psalm 8:2