Mommy Moments | The Trail To The TRUTH

Good morning, happy Monday! Welcome back to the blog! Today, I was hesitant to share this story about my son, but I said, you know what, there could be other parents going through this, so why not share? So here I am.

Last year, my ten year old son Jeremiah did something that I thought none of my children would ever do. I was shocked, upset, hurt & concerned because he lied about the entire thing. Well, what is it? What had me experiencing all of these mixed emotions? Well, let’s dig a little deeper shall we?

One day last year after I picked up my kids from school, I headed over to my favorite store Five and Below. I could go on and on about why I love this store, but I’ll spare you the details. Let’s just say they have the BEST cookbooks, glass mugs, workout clothes & equipment! Again, I can go on and on about this lol! No worries, I’ll get to the point here. So I was handling my shopping, I remember I was looking for some decor for my MOPS (mom’s of preschoolers) group.

When we walked into the store, the first thing we saw were fidget spinners. I mean it was a HUGE pile of them! My son picked up a white one and said, hey this one isn’t in a case. I let them have their fun, then I said ok, that fine but put it back. I started to walk to the back of the store, but I didn’t have a trail of kids behind me. I tell my kids all the time that I never want them walking behind me. I want to be able to see them. So when I reminded them of that, all of them ran to meet me, but I noticed Jeremiah took a bit longer to meet me. I didn’t think anything of it really. Until we got to the van…

AS SOON AS WE REACHED THE VAN, Jeremiah goes, “Mommy, my friend JW (name have been changed) gave me a WHITE fidget spinner. He didn’t want it.” I said, oookaaay… why are you telling me this? He said, oh I was just telling you that he didn’t want it because he got a new one. So I said, ok and left it alone.

For two nights, I had the same dream about how Jeremiah got that fidget spinner. I mean it was very detailed. I woke up, took the kids to school and saw the fidget spinner in my son’s room and I began to feel uncomfortable. I stood there thinking and praying, Lord, I don’t want to accuse my son of stealing… please show me the truth. The next day, I walked up to JW’s mom with JW in our presence and I asked her if her son owned a white fidget spinner and did he give it to my son? She said he never owned a white one & JW said he didn’t give it to Jeremiah.

Hmm… interesting. That’s funny because Jeremiah kept telling me JW gave it to him. Like he would say it at random times. So, that day, I told Jeremiah that until he tells me EXACTLY where he got the spinner, it will stay on my dresser. He cried… boy did he cry! Those tears didn’t move me at all. I knew the truth was revealed to me. I wanted to see if he would actually tell me.

Days went by and JW came to my front door asking if my son could play. I asked him again, did he give my son his spinner and he said no he never did. I questioned Jeremiah again and he changed his story. He said he found it on the ground at the bus stop, then he found it while riding his bike in the trails with his friends, then he said JW found it at the bus stop and told him he could keep it… are you getting a headache just reading the lies? Ugh! Smh…

My husband and I sat Jeremiah down and explained to him that their are consequences for lying. In our house, we don’t lie. If your last name is Tyree, you don’t lie. Telling the truth even if it gets him in trouble is ALWAYS the right path to take. Always. Jason (my husband) gave him scenarios about liars vs those who tell the truth. Then he finally broke and told us. He was ashamed and sad that he did it. We told him not only are we thankful he told us the truth, but God is truly grateful he told the truth! God doesn’t like it when we lie or take things that don’t belong to us.

I told Jeremiah that he is going back to Five and Below and he is going to talk to the manager about what he did. He is also going to pay for his toy that he took from the store.

So, Sunday, January 28, 2018, right after church we drove to Five and Below. Jeremiah looked very sad, but I told him this is what happens when you steal something… you have to confess and pay for what was taken. So, after I bought my foam roller & sneakers, I asked to see the Supervisor. I wanted to speak to him in private. So I told him my son has something very important to tell you about something he did…

Jeremiah very quietly explained what happened. He apologized and said he wanted to pay for what he took. The Supervisor was very nice. He said, he was thankful Jeremiah came back to tell him what he did. He said that was very honest of him. He also said that it is important never to do it again because he didn’t want to end up in a bad place. Then he told him how much the spinner was and Jeremiah paid for it with HIS MONEY. The Supervisor gave him his change and receipt and said, every time you leave a store, you need to make sure you have your receipt. Then he thanked us and that was the end of that.

When we forgive our children for wrong things they have done, it speaks volumes. I told Jeremiah that the day I found out he stole, I had him get on his knees in our laundry room (I was doing something in there), and I had him repeat a prayer of forgiveness. Then I told him God has forgiven him for his actions, but he had to forgive himself for doing it as well. And once he does, he can’t keep going back doing the same wrong thing over and over again.

Have you gone through anything like this with your child? I tell my kids all the time, they can’t hide anything from me because the truth always comes out. God speaks to me differently than most people. Since I’m visual, He tends to show me things to look out for in my dreams. My mother is the same way! We couldn’t hide anything lol! And now, I’m a mother and I now know what my mother experienced. It’s great to know that no matter what it looks like, God is always in control. My children will know the voice of God and a stranger’s voice they will not follow!