Mommy Musings
Monthly Column by Anni Welborne

The girls did not want to go to bed. They instead wanted to sit and cuddle with us and be comforted. They were afraid of the dark and very sad. My girls are typical in their stall techniques, but tonight was especially hard.

It was Good Friday evening, and instead of our usual bedtime story, songs, and prayers, we did a special activity with our daughters to help them realize and understand the Crucifixion of Jesus, at least in part. We had no idea the impact such a simple activity would have on our then 6 and 3 year old daughters. Or on ourselves.

We simply put several tea candles in the shape of a cross. My husband lit them all, and the girls oohed and aahed over the pretty candle lights. We taught the girls that another name for Jesus is “Light of the World,” and we read them the following verses (all from NASB).

John 3:19
"This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil."

John 8:12
"Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, 'I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.'"

John 9:5 (Jesus speaking)
"While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world."

John 12:46 (Jesus speaking)
"I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness."

Then with his Bible on his lap, my husband proceeded to read the last words of Jesus, from His arrest to His final words on the cross. With each saying, we took turns blowing out one tea light. Finally, the room was dark. (Well, sort of dark – blasted Daylight Savings Time!)

My husband prayed with our girls that they would understand the sadness of Jesus’ death. He also prayed that they would understand, even as children, how Jesus’ death paid the price for our sins. Finally he prayed that even though they felt sad, that they would hope in the resurrection.

So here we were, both girls reluctant to go to bed. All the lights in the house were out, except for the nightlight in their bedroom, and they expressed their fear of the dark. I believe that just about everything in this world was given by God to teach us about Himself, if we will but learn.

Romans 1:21 (NASB)
"For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse."

Even something as simple as the dark can teach us about God. It seems almost every person in the world has a fear of the dark. It’s in our souls to fear the dark. Why? Because God is Light, and the opposite of Light is dark. We fear what the dark represents. We fear what can happen in the dark. We know what happens in dark alleys and on dark city streets.

Our neighbors recently put up a new pole barn, and over the doors on either end is a great big light, piercing through the country darkness. Why? To deter the forces of darkness from breaking into their barn. We understand why they did it, but we were still somewhat saddened as that new light ruins the stargazing from our front porch.

Dark but for a nightlight, both girls continued to be reluctant to go to sleep, although we had finally gotten them in bed. The 3 year old asked for another story before bed, and I said no, that Daddy had already read them a story. Then the 6 year old piped up and said, “Yeah, but now we want a happy one!” I reminded her that on that terrible day, long ago, there was no happy story. God, Jesus’ Heavenly Father, and all the angels of Heaven were sadder than anyone in all of creation had ever been. All of Jesus’ earthly family and friends were sad and heartbroken. Even the earth was sad that Jesus had to die. I reminded her that Jesus was the Light of the World, and that because He died, the Light went out of the world. Again, the whole world was teaching us about God.

Luke 23:44-45 (NASB)
"It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour, because the sun was obscured…."

We were sad. Our little girls were sad, just thinking about Jesus dying and all the candles going out. The little tea candle lights going out really made an impression on the girls, but also on us. We could feel the weight of the darkness. Our older daughter expressed the fear that she would have bad dreams. I reminded her that her daddy had prayed that she would have pretty dreams.

I reminded both girls that while it was Friday, and we were sad, that Sunday was coming, that even though it had been Friday a long time ago when Jesus died, He rose again on Sunday. I reminded them that we have the blessing of knowing how the story ends, that Jesus did indeed come back to life on Sunday morning. Jesus is the Light of the World, and the sun was only darkened for a few hours. Jesus was dead only a few hours.

But still the girls could not be comforted enough to settle down for sleep. I asked the girls if they would feel better if I turned the overhead light on, and they said yes, please. Finally, they settled down and went to sleep, safe in the light of the room, safe in the Light of life, safe in the Light of the world.

John 8:12
"Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, 'I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.'"

About the Author: Anni is the wife of Charles Welborne and the homeschooling mother of five children - two daughters (ages 7 and 5) here on earth, and three who graduated early and now dwell with their Heavenly Father. She assists her husband in the tape/CD duplication ministry at their church, where she is also in charge of the Deaf ministry and serves as a sign language interpreter. Anni is also a part-time Developmental Therapist for at-risk and developmentally delayed infants and preschoolers. In her "spare" time, she enjoys sewing, quilting, scrapbooking, and making pysanky (Ukranian decorated eggs). The Welbornes live in Indiana.

Copyright © 2008 by Anni Welborne.