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Dawnie
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| Posted: Oct 08 2006 at 3:37pm | IP Logged
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Our dog died last night.  We got him for our kids last May as a birthday present. He was only 7 months old. He had been sick for the last few days...dh took him to the vet yesterday morning and the vet thought it was probably just a stomach virus. So, the kids and I prayed to St. Francis yesterday, asking him to help Dan get better. Today, my 7yod asked me why God didn't help Dan get better. I told her that sometimes God says "no" when we ask Him for something...and she wants to know why...I don't know what to tell her. I'm really sad, too, and I don't want this to discourage her from praying. Any suggestions?
Dawn
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Visit my blog!Water Into Wine:Vino Per Tutto!
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MicheleQ
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| Posted: Oct 08 2006 at 4:24pm | IP Logged
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Dawnie wrote:
| Today, my 7yod asked me why God didn't help Dan get better. I told her that sometimes God says "no" when we ask Him for something...and she wants to know why...I don't know what to tell her. I'm really sad, too, and I don't want this to discourage her from praying. Any suggestions? |
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Dawn,
I think it's perfectly fine for you to tell her that you don't know. Focus on God's great love for all His creatures and the fact that God sees and understands what we cannot and that this is an opportunity for her to simply trust Him even though she doesn't understand.
Don't worry about her being discouraged from praying but rather try to focus on the trust aspect - it's a good lesson to learn and the earlier the better.
God bless!
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Michele Quigley
wife to my prince charming and mom of 10 in Lancaster County, PA USA
http://michelequigley.com
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Mary G
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Dawnie,
You might want to see if you can get a copy of the movie "The Small Miracle", based on the story by Paul Gallico -- it's a very similar story and might help your kids understand....
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MaryG
3 boys (22, 12, 8)2 girls (20, 11)
my website that combines my schooling, hand-knits work, writing and everything else in one spot!
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alicegunther
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| Posted: Oct 08 2006 at 8:51pm | IP Logged
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No real suggestions to add to these, just prayers for you and your children. Losing a pet is so hard for young ones.
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JSchaaf
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| Posted: Oct 08 2006 at 9:25pm | IP Logged
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We will be praying for you and your children. It is so hard to lose a pet.
Jennifer
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Dawnie
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| Posted: Oct 10 2006 at 1:13pm | IP Logged
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Thank you Michelle and Mary for your suggestions.
And thank you, Jennifer and Alice for your prayers. Jennifer, I remember reading on your blog and this forum not long ago about the death of your family dog. How are your kids doing now?
The last time I lost a pet I was in high school, and I had forgotten how hard it is. I know Dan (our dog) was just an animal, but gosh, he seemed so human sometimes.
My 7yod has been drawing pictures of him everywhere...she drew one of Daddy taking Dan on a walk and sticky-tacked it on our bedroom door. So sweet.
Dawn
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Mom to Mary Beth (99), Anna (02), Lucia (04), Clara (06), and Adelaide Victoria (2/28/09)
Visit my blog!Water Into Wine:Vino Per Tutto!
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JSchaaf
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| Posted: Oct 10 2006 at 2:42pm | IP Logged
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Dawnie wrote:
And thank you, Jennifer and Alice for your prayers. Jennifer, I remember reading on your blog and this forum not long ago about the death of your family dog. How are your kids doing now?
Dawn |
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The kids are fine...it helped that we left for the summer!! We all still get a little sad, though, especially when we look at pictures of Katie. It's our other dog, Radar, who's having trouble! He needs a friend! I think after our Thanksgiving trip to AZ we will be getting another dog.
Jennifer
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Sarah
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Sorry to hear about that Dawnie. We love our dog.
I'm not sure what to say about your kids. Hang in there. I'll pray.
Sorry this post sounds kind of cold.I really don't know what to say. 
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Karen E.
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Dawn, I'm so sorry about your dog. It's so hard on kids to lose a pet.
When our hamster died last year, I couldn't believe how much my middle daughter grieved. It was heart wrenching! She, too, asked why it happened.
Something that seems to have helped my kids is for me to recount a time in my life when I didn't know why God was doing what He was doing, but later I could see His hand in it. I told them a couple of stories along those lines, and it was a bit of comfort. I also added that there are plenty of times when we won't see (until we get to Heaven) why God did what He did, and those are the times that we just have to turn to Jesus, and that we know that He knows how we feel. And that sometimes, just crying to Him, and knowing that He understands, can help.
I'll be praying for you all!
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God bless,
Karen E.
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4Real Forums : Domestic Church
Topic: hard question
