Hey Guys here is a post from my wife's blog ......She is amazing
Cracks
Last evening (Sunday) we rushed home after a day of church and began our usual bed time rush. Spring Break is over (sadly), and I knew Emma needed to be in bed at a decent hour, which had passed two hours prior to "the rush." I automatically started dishing out the usual commands, "Emma, brush your teeth......Emma get your pajamas on!.....Macy, I've got your cereal. Are you ready to eat?......Timmy did somebody let Smokey out?.....Emma, I said brush your teeth.....And did you potty before bed?.....No, it's too late for a snack.......I SAID BRUSH YOUR TEETH!!!!!
(Do you get why I call it "the rush"?)
Anyhow, I finally got everyone settled down, and I went to tuck Emma into bed. My plan was to get it done quickly and she would go to sleep quickly (yeah, right!). But nonetheless we began our usual routine. We got a drink of water. We turned her night light on, and we sang her lullaby (which happens right now to be "Glory, glory, glory Jesus touched me). When we finished singing she said, "Momma, I was wondering if you could just lay down with me for a few minutes." I started to say, "No, it's bed time. You have school tomorrow.' But then I thought....I should never be too busy to snuggle. Twenty more awake minutes won't make that much difference at 7:00am tomorrow. So I paused, and we snuggled, and I am so glad I did because God used 20 simple minutes to again teach me a complex truth.
You see, Emma is afraid of the cracks in her room. Her bed is next to the wall, and that leaves a small crack between the wall and her bed. In her six year old mind, something might come out of that crack at night, especially in the dark, and get her. So just to be sure she's safe, we line that crack with pillows every night.
After we took care of all the cracks in the room, she tried to go to sleep, but I could tell she seemed worried I might leave, so she hugged me as tight as she could, even while we sang. Then, when it came time for our prayers, she said, "Momma, can you just pray tonight?" Of course that was fine, so I began praying, and in my prayer I began praying specifically for Emma. In the midst of mentioning her name several times, I felt a light tap on my shoulder. I paused, looked down, and I saw Emma hold her hand up as if to say, "Stop." Then she said, "Excuse me, but could you just ask Him to help me not be afraid?" And I did. And within 5 minutes she was gone.....solid gone!
So, here's my big truth from my little moment....
You see, our life is full of cracks. Big ones, small ones, dark ones, scary ones. Some of our cracks are fears that leave us terrified and frightened, others are sins that leave us defeated and beaten, others are pressures that leave us weary and down trodden. And what do we do? We try to cover the cracks, but soon we find that there just aren't enough pillows.
But you see, Emma had the right concept. She knew those pillows could be easily moved. But she also knew there was one who was greater than those pillows and bigger than her fears. You see, we have a heavenly Father who knows, is interested in, and has even created the most delicate parts of us. I love that Psalm 139 reminds us, "O Lord you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up ; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. "
He knew Emma's fears before I even prayed for her. He, too, knows our cracks when no one else does and before we ourselves are even aware of them. And, yet, he gives us a great promise...a great comfort in Isaiah 41:10, "fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
Why? Not because we deserve it, but because he is God.
(Do you get why I call it "the rush"?)
Anyhow, I finally got everyone settled down, and I went to tuck Emma into bed. My plan was to get it done quickly and she would go to sleep quickly (yeah, right!). But nonetheless we began our usual routine. We got a drink of water. We turned her night light on, and we sang her lullaby (which happens right now to be "Glory, glory, glory Jesus touched me). When we finished singing she said, "Momma, I was wondering if you could just lay down with me for a few minutes." I started to say, "No, it's bed time. You have school tomorrow.' But then I thought....I should never be too busy to snuggle. Twenty more awake minutes won't make that much difference at 7:00am tomorrow. So I paused, and we snuggled, and I am so glad I did because God used 20 simple minutes to again teach me a complex truth.
You see, Emma is afraid of the cracks in her room. Her bed is next to the wall, and that leaves a small crack between the wall and her bed. In her six year old mind, something might come out of that crack at night, especially in the dark, and get her. So just to be sure she's safe, we line that crack with pillows every night.
After we took care of all the cracks in the room, she tried to go to sleep, but I could tell she seemed worried I might leave, so she hugged me as tight as she could, even while we sang. Then, when it came time for our prayers, she said, "Momma, can you just pray tonight?" Of course that was fine, so I began praying, and in my prayer I began praying specifically for Emma. In the midst of mentioning her name several times, I felt a light tap on my shoulder. I paused, looked down, and I saw Emma hold her hand up as if to say, "Stop." Then she said, "Excuse me, but could you just ask Him to help me not be afraid?" And I did. And within 5 minutes she was gone.....solid gone!
So, here's my big truth from my little moment....
You see, our life is full of cracks. Big ones, small ones, dark ones, scary ones. Some of our cracks are fears that leave us terrified and frightened, others are sins that leave us defeated and beaten, others are pressures that leave us weary and down trodden. And what do we do? We try to cover the cracks, but soon we find that there just aren't enough pillows.
But you see, Emma had the right concept. She knew those pillows could be easily moved. But she also knew there was one who was greater than those pillows and bigger than her fears. You see, we have a heavenly Father who knows, is interested in, and has even created the most delicate parts of us. I love that Psalm 139 reminds us, "O Lord you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up ; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. "
He knew Emma's fears before I even prayed for her. He, too, knows our cracks when no one else does and before we ourselves are even aware of them. And, yet, he gives us a great promise...a great comfort in Isaiah 41:10, "fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
Why? Not because we deserve it, but because he is God.
2 comments:
Wow! As we say at FBBI, "that could preach!" I love how God teaches us stuff through our children! I'm learning stuff everyday and Avery is the subject of many of my illustrations in sermons now. Great blog post man!
My wife is amazing women. She is an amazing writer. I read it and immediately posted it on my blog so others could see..
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