Keep Being a Blessing, Even When Your Actions Seem to Go Unnoticed

Keep Being a Blessing, Even When Your Actions Seem to Go Unnoticed
Bible Verse of the Day: Matthew 25:40b, NLT I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!

See also:
Bible Verses about Being a Blessing; Bible Verses about Helping Others; Bible Verses about Appreciating Others; Bible Verses about Appreciating God; The Power of An Encouraging Word

“Tatu Yod…Ees!”
Some time ago, I was getting the kids ready for bed… we were all happy but were also pretty tired after what had been a very long Saturday of playing very hard for most of the day. We were running very late for bedtime, so after brushing their teeth and getting their pjs on, I put the boys into bed and was ready to run out so they could settle down as soon as possible. I didn’t want them to sleep too late, Plus I was very ready for some me time and of course some hubby time too. 😀

I skipped some parts of our usual bedtime routine, just trying to quickly get them into bed. Got them all tucked in, turned out the lights, said a quick prayer and was just about to dash out when my then 19month old started saying, first quietly, and then really really loud: “TATU YOD…EES”!!! I had no idea what this meant.

My older son, a preschooler, will often help translate, but he was of no help that night (too tired maybe :)?). I wanted to leave but my toddler was insistent, so I stayed and kept asking, “what do you want little guy”? He said the same phrase again and again and so I thought about it some more.

Hmm… Ok.. I knew “Ees” meant “Please” in his language:), and “Tatu” meant “Thank you”. So really, all I had to figure out was the “Yod” part…. And then the light bulb went of – I finally got it! He was saying “Thank you Lord, Please”!:)!

Here’s the background…lol. Our typical bedtime routine at the time included a story, a song or two, a simple prayer and then of course lots of hugs and kisses. A little while prior to that night, I had started including some choruses I sang as a child in our bedtime songs (as opposed to mainstream nursery rhymes, lullabies etc – which we definitely enjoy regularly as well!).

One of my favorites is this one: “Thank you thank you lord”. I hadn’t realized that song meant so much to him:)! So yes, he didn’t want me to leave without singing what had become our regular bedtime song… I was just so touched, nothing else mattered anymore, and we all sat down and sang again and again and again.

Prior to that, both boys always seemed to enjoy all the songs we sang, and my then 3.5yr old preschooler and I would sing along to the more familiar ones… but my toddler had never joined in singing “Tatu Yod” until that night. So his asking to sing, and then going on to sing the song so wholeheartedly with us was such a pleasant surprise. I didn’t even realize he could sing the song (Now I definitely DO…I am reminded every day:))!

After I finally left their room, I smiled and started thinking more about what had just happened. It was yet another reminder for me to always try to be careful with my words and actions – not only with children, but with everyone I ever come in contact with. While some people may freely express themselves to others when they have something on their minds, others may not. We are all so different, with varying personalities… and our life experiences also help shape our personalities. And that’s ok!

But yes, sometimes the things we say or do affect people positively and we may not realize it, but on the other hand, sometimes the things we say or do actually affect people negatively and we have absolutely no idea.

I am hoping and praying that I’ll always have the wisdom and discernment to realize when my words or actions have a negative effect on people (even when they say nothing about it), so I can stop saying or doing such things. People won’t always tell you when you unintentionally hurt them… just as they won’t always immediately (or ever) tell you when you’ve been a blessing to them.

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