\u201cHey, Mom!\u201d David shouted. \u201cLook at the cool slingshot Papa brought me. I\u2019m taking it outside to see how well I can hit things.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDon\u2019t aim at birds or animals,\u201d Mom warned. David assured her he wouldn\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Roaming the woods behind his house with a pocket full of rocks and Skip at his heels, David shot several trees, bushes, and rocks. How high can I hit something?<\/em> he wondered. Forgetting his promise to his mother, he aimed, pulled back as far as he could, and watched the stone sail strong and true \u2014 straight to the chest of a bird.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The bird fell to the ground, lifeless. \u201cOh no,\u201d David moaned. \u201cWhat have I done?\u201d Hearing a noise overhead, he saw a nest and climbed to where it rested. In it three hungry baby birds were squawking. David slowly backed down the tree without touching the nest or the birds. He and Skip hid in a nearby bush, hoping to see another bird return to the babies. None came near. What was he to do?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hating the thought of admitting what he\u2019d done, David forced himself to return home. Mom saw him and Skip come dragging through the yard, and she instantly knew something was wrong. Stepping onto the back porch, she called out, \u201cDavid, what\u2019s the matter? You look like you lost your best friend.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Guilt overcame him, and he dropped to the ground cross-legged, head in his hands. \u201cMom, I know I promised not to aim at anything living, but I honestly didn\u2019t think the rock would go that high.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat are you saying?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI accidentally hit and killed a robin, and I think she has some babies. I found a nest. I never dreamed disobedience could feel this bad. It makes my heart and my stomach hurt. What can I do?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mom smiled, understanding his pain. \u201cDavid, you are learning an important lesson firsthand.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat lesson? I already know I shouldn\u2019t point my slingshot at animals.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is much more important,\u201d Mom replied. \u201cYou\u2019re learning the true meaning of repentance. Remember when you\u2019ve done something wrong and we tell you to say, \u2018I\u2019m sorry\u2019? Have you ever said it when you didn\u2019t really mean it?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah,\u201d David confessed. \u201cLots of times. I remember saying it just so I wouldn\u2019t get into more trouble. But that\u2019s not like today. I really do feel sorry and wish I could go back and undo what I\u2019ve done.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is more like the repentance that the Bible talks about when we\u2019re told to \u2018Repent and be baptized.\u2019 It\u2019s not just a fleeting thought of regret or feeling sorry that we got caught. It\u2019s a sincere desire to never do those things again, to turn our behavior around and seek to follow God\u2019s will fully.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYeah, this is really different,\u201d David admitted. \u201cI never want to feel like this again. I\u2019ll be super careful with my slingshot from now on.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat\u2019s great.\u201d Mom smiled. \u201cNow let\u2019s see how we can feed three hungry birds.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u201cHey, Mom!\u201d David shouted. \u201cLook at the cool slingshot Papa brought me. I\u2019m taking it outside to see how well I can hit things.\u201d \u201cDon\u2019t aim at birds or animals,\u201d Mom warned. David assured her he wouldn\u2019t. Roaming the woods behind his house with a pocket full of rocks and Skip at his heels, David […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1576,"featured_media":32073,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","castos_file_data":"","podmotor_file_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2598],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n