KEYWORDS: techi, grandpa, jesus, lord, girl

Grandpa Dealing with Techi--Be Good

David Berg

DO 216910/84

—5-1/2 years old.

1. … Now we shouldn't have to argue with you, Techi, to get in your bed at this hour of night, after midnight. (Maria: She's getting pretty argumentative lately, Grandpa. I guess it's 'cause you just don't make her do what she's supposed to do the first time, so she argues a lot.)

2. DO YOU WANT GOD TO PUNISH YOU?—Like that stomachache you had the other night? (Maria: You usually have hours with Grandpa every night, but then you complain one night when you can't have so much. If the big girls even see Grandpa on the steps or downstairs & just get one big hug, that makes their whole day happy. They don't usually get to spend even 5 minutes in Grandpa's arms. When they get to spend that, that is the most wonderful thing in the World for them!)

3. REBUKE ALL THE POWERS OF EVIL‚ LORD, IN JESUS' NAME! HELP TECHI TO MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE & BE A GOOD GIRL & TO OBEY & GET IN HER BED! When they were praying the Lord's Prayer‚ "Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven," the little girl asked the little boy, "How's that?"—And what did the little boy say? Do you remember? He said, "Right now!" That's how God's will is done in Heaven, & that's the way He wants it done on Earth!

4. WHEN FOLKS HAVE BEEN VERY KIND TO YOU & VERY PATIENT & VERY LOVING & LET YOU DO A LOT, & then they say, "It's time to quit" & ask you kindly to quit & kindly to do what you're supposed to do, to get in your bed & go to sleep 'cause we're all tired & sick & need to go to sleep too, then you should obey & go to bed. So I'm going to roll over & turn my back to you & you're going to have to make the decision to do good or to do evil, to do right or to do wrong.—To get in your bed or to be naughty & be bad & disobey when you've been asked kindly by both Mama & Grandpa.

5. (MARIA: THE LORD WANTS YOU TO LEARN TO APPRECIATE A LITTLE TIME WITH GRANDPA & NOT JUST SAY IT'S NOTHING. There are so many women in the World that would give anything to have five minutes in Grandpa's arms!) If you don't appreciate living in Grandpa's & Mama's room, we can easily move you out. Do you want us to have to move you out because you won't obey & do what you're told to when you're supposed to? Would you like us to move you in with Hope instead? That's something to think about. Because if you can't obey & do what you're asked to do when you're supposed to do it, we just can't have you in here if you're going to be naughty & bad & disobedient instead of a good girl. Where do you learn that?—Downstairs? (Maria: No, she has to be good downstairs‚ don't you? You have to do what you're told. I think Mommy & Grandpa have let her get away with a little too much by babying her & not insisting she obey right away. We let you get away with a little too much.) (Techi lies down in bed.)

6. AMEN. TYJ! GOD BLESS YOU, SWEETHEART! I KNOW IT'S HARD TO QUIT‚ BUT THE NIGHT COMES WHEN WE'VE ALL GOTTA QUIT & GO TO SLEEP! PTL! Thank You Jesus for getting the victory! Thank You Jesus for helping Techi to be a good girl & make the right choice & obey when we told her to get in her bed. It's too late for anything else tonight because it's so late. So praise the Lord. When you stay late downstairs on your late nights, we can't stay up late here too. (Maria: This is Saturday night, late night, when you have a fun time downstairs & Grandpa was getting a Letter up here!) You stayed up very late now so that's a good time to quit. Good girl! I love you, & thank you for being a good girl & being obedient & doing what you were asked to do. Goodnight, Sweetheart. I love you!

7. YOU HAVE SO MUCH TO BE THANKFUL FOR: A MAMA THAT LOVES YOU & A GRANDPA WHO LOVES YOU & A WHOLE BIG FAMILY WHO LOVES YOU!—And most of all God & Jesus & the Holy Spirit Who love you & all the Angels who love you & they're all taking care of you when you're a good girl. But it's even hard for the Angels to take care of you when you're a bad girl, because when you're naughty & bad & disobey & won't do as you're told & asked, then you give the Devil & his angels a chance to get at you. So you don't ever want to do that. When people disobey the Lord, He has to turn them over to the punishment of the Devil until they learn to obey. I'm glad that hasn't happened to you, thank the Lord. Maybe a few times little things like getting sick because you didn't take your nap.

8. SO YOU DON'T EVER WANT TO DISOBEY GRANDPA OR MAMA OR THE LORD OR ANYBODY, ESPECIALLY THE LORD!—Because then He might have to let the Devil spank you or one of his little imps cause you some trouble & make you sick at your tummy like you were the other night because you didn't take your nap. So praise the Lord! Thank You Jesus! Amen! Thank You Lord for all Your blessings! Thank You Lord for such a good girl. Goodnight, Sweetheart.

9. … (Next day: )

10. THERE'S NOTHING WE WOULDN'T DO FOR YOU, SO THERE SHOULDN'T BE ANYTHING YOU WOULDN'T DO FOR US!—AND WHEN GRANDPA ASKS YOU TO GO TO SLEEP, YOU SHOULD DO IT CHEERFULLY. We do lots of nice things for you, we've given you a nice light to read by & I put all those pretty pictures on the wall for you & tried to make you comfy & happy‚ & we've got people here to take care of you & do everything we can for you. You ought to be willing to do one little thing‚ & that is go to bed when I tell you to & let your poor old sick Grandpa go to sleep‚ because he needs it. I even let you drink my eggnog. Do you like it?

11. I LOVE YOU ALL THE SAME, BUT IN SOME WAYS BECAUSE YOU'RE THE YOUNGEST & LITTLEST OF MAMA'S CHILDREN & THE VERY SPECIAL ONE THAT I ASKED FOR & ORDERED FROM THE LORD, NATURALLY I HAVE A VERY SPECIAL LOVE FOR YOU. You have a very special place in my heart & in my room & even in my bed. (Maria: Grandpa ordered David too & loves him very much.) I ordered him first. We thought he was going to be a girl & he turned out to be a boy. How about that? But the Lord knew what was best, to have us have a boy first so he could help take care of you. (Techi: Sometimes the girl is older than the boy.) Yes, & sometimes that's good too, because then she can help take care of her little brother. And Davida is younger than David, so he can help take care of her too.

12. SO I LOVE YOU ALL & I COULDN'T SAY IN JUST EXACTLY WHAT ORDER, BUT NATURALLY YOU'RE VERY SPECIAL & DAVID'S VERY SPECIAL, BECAUSE YOU'RE MOMMY'S OWN CHILDREN THAT CAME OUT OF HER TUMMY! Well, I don't want you going back there & telling them that I like one more than another! I love'm all! … (Maria: And you love each one in a special way.) Yes, in a very special way. (Maria: It's hard for parents to say which one they love the best because they love each one in a different way.) I love Techi in Techi's way, & I love David in David's way, & Davida in her way, & Mary Dear in her way. So each one is special in their own way.

13. (TECHI: AND MARY DEAR IS AN UNSAVED SINNER!) Oh, ho ho! Ha, ha, ha! Who said she's an unsaved sinner? (Techi: She is!) Well‚ Honey, she likes pictures of Jesus & she loves Jesus, I'm sure. (Techi: She doesn't even know Jesus yet.) Well, how do you know? Maybe she's even seen Him in her dreams or in her heart. God's Word says that if the parents love Jesus, the children are clean or saved. (1Cor.7:14) (Techi: So you can say Mary Dear is cleansed by her parents?) That's right, exactly. If her parents are saved when the children are just babies like Mary Dear, then she's saved too. When you were just a baby, you belonged to Jesus from the very beginning, because you belonged to us & we're saved. (Techi: Mostly babies know Jesus even when they're not born yet.) That's right‚ they came from Heaven. So Mary Dear knew Jesus before she even left Heaven, just like you. (Techi: So they must be saved.) Of course she's saved, Honey. So don't say that Mary Dear is an unsaved sinner.

14. BUT THERE COMES A TIME WHEN YOU'RE OLD ENOUGH TO TALK & BE TALKED TO & UNDERSTAND ABOUT JESUS. (Techi: She is talking already.) A little bit, but she's got to be old enough to understand. (Techi: She can't say, "Jesus please come into my heart.") That's right, she's got to be able to pray like that, & then she makes a choice for herself. She herself chooses Jesus, see? Until that time, her parents choose Jesus for her & she's saved now because her parents are saved. When you were about two years you could talk & be talked to & understand, & you asked Jesus to come into your heart with Dora. Did you know that? (Techi: I still have that old Bible I used to read when I was two.) You do? My oh my, how about that! You got to be a Bible student at two years of age! She got saved & started reading her Bible!

15. (TECHI: WHEN I WAS A LITTLE GIRL, ONE DAY THE WATER WAS RUNNING IN THE PINK ROOM & GUESS WHAT HAPPENED? MY BIBLE GOT ALL WET! When I was two.) Oh, that's right. You're right! How could you remember that? That was a long time ago, but it was when you were three, not two. (Maria: Did somebody tell you?) (Techi: I just keep it up in my memory.) Oh good, you've got it in your memory bank. Like the little computer has a memory bank, you've got a memory bank & you keep it up in your memory. (Techi: It's a picture Bible, a big heavy heavy Bible.) I know. I remember down in South Africa you used to always want it when we had Bible Study.

16. ONE MORE LITTLE SWALLOW, & THEN IS THE MOST DANGEROUS SWALLOW OF ALL, when you get near the bottom & you start to turn the cup almost upside-down‚ because it's apt to come down in your face. (Techi: But why do you turn the cup upside-down?) Because with the last swallow you've got to turn it upside-down to get it all, that's why. (Techi: But you said it's dangerous.) It is! That's why I didn't let you do it, I did it all by myself. It is dangerous to turn the cup upside–down because it can just all come down right in your face. Grandpa oughtta know, I've done it several times. (Techi: I've done it one time too. I was finishing up Grandpa's juice & I drank the last swallow & suddenly, whhsst!) That's true!—Be careful on that last swallow!