It was 8:15 pm. We sat down for family prayer. We read the designated portion and exchanged our prayer requests for the night.

As my daughter prepared to pray, she reviewed the requests out loud. Once she recalled them confidently, she closed her eyes to pray.

But instead of “Our heavenly father…” she said “Okay, Google.”

I’m not gonna lie- ALL of our heads jerked up and we opened our eyes. We immediately started cracking up. My daughter was astounded at her own words- “Did I just say okay, GOOGLE?”

It was pretty funny, but after I had tucked them in for the night, the doubt crept in.

Why would she say that? What a weird slip up? Does she talk to Google more than she talks to God? (That’s probably a yes- she is only 7 and Google seems to know everything.) Is she absorbing anything that we are teaching her?

If I’m being honest, she is absorbing what I teach her. This was probably an honest mistake- I know that she knows the difference between Google and God. But how do I make sure that her heart really belongs to God and not Google?

This was a great reminder of the words in Deuteronomy 6: 5-9

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.”

I hope that I can live up to these words and the next generation picks up right where we left off. I pray that my kids will see me worship, tithe, study, read, pray, write and sing and it make an impression on their hearts.

~Shiney