Reason #295
I got to snuggle a baby today. Four days old. Sweet, tiny, and perfect! Ususally babies cry when I hold them, but he didn't. Obviously, he is already a very agreeable, easy going little guy. Maybe I just don't have that "motherly hold" down yet. I don't know what it is, but I was thankful he let me hold him for a good bit. Seven pounds of cuteness rested in my arms and his little eyes studied my face. I rubbed his soft arm, admired his features, and held him tightly. So small. Little hands, little feet, tiny nose, little lips. And as he cooed and squirmed I couldn't help but just love him. So fragile, so helpless, so dependent. This sweet baby, not even my own child, was trusting me. In fact, he entered this world that way. Trusting that he was going to be taken care of. Trusting that he was out of harm's way. Full of trust because he has no reason not to be. And so today, he trusted that I would hold him tightly and safely (as did his parents), and I did exactly that. I held him close and wouldn't have done anything less. He's not even my own child, and today was our first time to meet, but he didn't seem the least bit worried as I held him. He didn't panic that this stranger was toting him around rather than his own mother. He didn't seem concerned about the way I was carrying him or where I took him. No, he just rested in my arms and trusted me without even realizing that's what he was doing. But right now, trust is natural to him. Trust comes easy because he's not been given an opportunity to second guess or think any differently. And, as long as I held on to him, I wasn't going to give him any reason not to trust me. In fact, I already have a soft spot in my heart for him because of who he is, who he belongs to, and I had his best interest in mind the whole time.
As I cuddled this sweet miracle I thought about how God does this with us. Tiny, fragile, dependent children we are to Him. Little ones He holds on to tightly in His hands. And I just have to think He looks at us and He marvels at us. Our features, just the way He designed them. Perfect, we are to Him. And so we come to Him with child-like faith and we trust Him. But sometimes, things happen in life and our world is rocked to the core. We are shaken and stretched, challenged and pushed to our limits and our trust begins to waiver. Because up until this point, we had no reason not to trust. Up until this point, trust came easily because we hadn't been given an opportunity to second guess. And so now what? What do we do? Well, sometimes there isn't much you can do. Sometimes, you really are helpless because this is new territory to you. It's out of your control. And, what I've found during these times is that you just have to focus on what you do know rather than what you don't know. There's a lot we don't know. Usually, what we don't know outweighs what we do know, but if you believe one word of scripture, you must believe them all. And so He tells us to trust Him. "For the word of the Lord holds true, and we can trust everything he does." (Psalm 33:4) And really, if you think about it, why wouldn't we trust Him? Because has He yet done anything to cause us to second guess Him? Has He given us a single reason not to trust Him?
And so I think about my feelings towards the sweet bundle of joy I held today. A girl who didn't breathe life into his little lungs, one who didn't birth him, yet I still want the best for him. And, if I feel that way about a child that isn't my own, I can only imagine how the One who gave me life, who breathed it straight into my very own lungs, must feel about me. I know He only wants the best for me. Sometimes, I don't know what the best is, but I know as long as He's holding me, He's going to do exactly that. And so, sometimes, all I really can do is just let Him hold me close, rest in His arms, and trust. Trust because I know I can. Trust because He tells me to. Trust because I know as long as He's got me, there's no reason not to.
#295 - Because He has never given me a reason not to trust Him.
"The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving." - Psalm 28:7
As I cuddled this sweet miracle I thought about how God does this with us. Tiny, fragile, dependent children we are to Him. Little ones He holds on to tightly in His hands. And I just have to think He looks at us and He marvels at us. Our features, just the way He designed them. Perfect, we are to Him. And so we come to Him with child-like faith and we trust Him. But sometimes, things happen in life and our world is rocked to the core. We are shaken and stretched, challenged and pushed to our limits and our trust begins to waiver. Because up until this point, we had no reason not to trust. Up until this point, trust came easily because we hadn't been given an opportunity to second guess. And so now what? What do we do? Well, sometimes there isn't much you can do. Sometimes, you really are helpless because this is new territory to you. It's out of your control. And, what I've found during these times is that you just have to focus on what you do know rather than what you don't know. There's a lot we don't know. Usually, what we don't know outweighs what we do know, but if you believe one word of scripture, you must believe them all. And so He tells us to trust Him. "For the word of the Lord holds true, and we can trust everything he does." (Psalm 33:4) And really, if you think about it, why wouldn't we trust Him? Because has He yet done anything to cause us to second guess Him? Has He given us a single reason not to trust Him?
And so I think about my feelings towards the sweet bundle of joy I held today. A girl who didn't breathe life into his little lungs, one who didn't birth him, yet I still want the best for him. And, if I feel that way about a child that isn't my own, I can only imagine how the One who gave me life, who breathed it straight into my very own lungs, must feel about me. I know He only wants the best for me. Sometimes, I don't know what the best is, but I know as long as He's holding me, He's going to do exactly that. And so, sometimes, all I really can do is just let Him hold me close, rest in His arms, and trust. Trust because I know I can. Trust because He tells me to. Trust because I know as long as He's got me, there's no reason not to.
#295 - Because He has never given me a reason not to trust Him.
"The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving." - Psalm 28:7