Smart Enough To Say I’m Sorry

… yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance. 2 Corinthians 7:9


My daughter is a sensible little girl, but last week she made an unfortunate decision she is likely to remember for a very long time. She informed my husband that she is just as smart as he is, and therefore no longer requires his guidance or input in her life. We expected to hear this during the teen years, but not from the mouth of our six-year-old.

Thankfully, my quick-thinking husband had just the cure for this know-it-all attitude of hers. “Great!” He said. “Since you know everything I do, then you know how to sweep all of these stubborn pine needles off of the driveway. Take as much time as you need, but you can’t go the Halloween party you were planning on for this evening until the whole driveway is clear. Have I ever mentioned that our driveway is 120 feet long? Boy, am I ever glad you know how to do this because it is a job I have been dreading.”

Without a word, little hands grasped the long push broom and got to work. She toiled for almost two hours, gathering the needles until small piles dotted the length of the driveway. She finally came in and confessed to me, “I don’t know how to get the piles into the bag. Will you help me?” I happily showed her how to get the first grouping into the large leaf bag, and then left her to continue her work. When she came back in about 30 minutes later, her cheeks were pink and her hair was sweaty. “Boy,” she said. “Did I ever learn my lesson!” She then added, “Mom, thanks for all the things you do for me. I better go thank Daddy too!” She apologized for what she said earlier, and I told her that I would know she was truly sorry when I saw her attitude change for good.

This is true of our relationship with God as well. When we make a mistake, He is ready to help us learn where we went wrong so we can tell Him we are sorry, but the words don’t mean as much as a changed heart. Nothing says, “I’m sorry” like improved behavior.

Sweeping the driveway gave my daughter plenty of time to reflect on what she said and her attitude made a notable improvement. One of my neighbors had her daughter pull weeds from the garden for an hour after a similar incident. What are some things you have done to help your child find a better outlook?