The Father

Twenty-five years ago this past Christmas Jim and I were anxiously awaiting the birth of our first child.  Our baby girl was due and we were ready to meet her.  (We were also enjoying the idea that it was Christmas and we were relating to another young couple in a new way.)

Christmas came and went but no baby.  New Year's Eve and came and went without a baby (there went Jim's tax deduction).  Little Christmas, as my Armenian Grandma called it, came and went with no baby.  On about January tenth I told Jim, "I think this child has subscribed to Better Womb and Garden and has taken up permanent residency."  As we went to yet another doctor's appointment that same week, we were convinced that this baby was never going to come.

The doctor checked everything out and said it was all good so we settled in to wait some more.  Then on Saturday evening, the phone rang.  It was our doctor.  "You know, I've been thinking and talking with some other doctors at University Hospital.  It is our thought that since the baby is not in distress we should induce labor and help this baby along.  I would like you to come to the hospital tomorrow morning and we will have a baby!" 

This new development caught us off guard and Jim was scrambling because he not only had to preach the next morning but it was annual meeting day and he needed to chair the congregational meeting.  The doctor assured us that it was not a problem.  If I could get a ride to the hospital, we would get things prepped and by the time Jim got there we would be ready to go and have our baby.  That is exactly how it happened.  A nurse friend took me to the hospital with all my gear and Jim went off to church. ( He said he conducted the shortest annual meeting on record.)  As soon as he could, he hopped in the car with everyone's good wishes and prayers and drove the half-hour ride to our wonderful little country hospital.  I was so glad to see him!!

Labor kicked in and we tried to remember all the things we learned in our birthing classes.  "Hee hee hoo;  hee hee hoo."  The hours passed and the sun went down and we were still laboring but then the moment came when the nurse said, "Ok, it's time to push."  There was a flurry of activity and the doctor was called and now there was no more chatting, or joking.  It was all business.  We were having a baby!

Abigail Rose arrived at 10:35 on January fifteen.  She was perfect and beautiful.  The nurse wrapped the baby in a pastel striped receiving blanket and put a stretchy pink hat on her head.  She lifted our daughter over the bed rail right up next to my cheek so I could see her and touch her soft newborn skin.  Our first family picture was taken and then the nurse said to Jim, "Would you like to take the baby to the nursery?"  "Would I?!"  Jim cradled that precious bundle in his arms and headed down the hall where they were waiting for the baby.  I swear that the second he took Abby in his arms his feet raised six inches off the floor and he floated all the way to the nursery. 

Remembering that wonderful evening makes me think of one of my favorite passages in God's Word.  Isaiah chapter forty-six and verses three and four say:

“Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob,
    all the remnant of the people of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since your birth,
    and have carried since you were born.
Even to your old age and gray hairs
    I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
    I will sustain you and I will rescue you."

 

Can you not see God, the Father, carrying you, taking delight in you and protecting you as though you were His most treasured child?  Do you not take great comfort in the idea that he not only loves you as a little child but he loves you throughout your entire life even into old age.  He will carry you and sustain you and rescue you.

The Mine Field

Our tour bus was traveling north through Israel's Golan Heights.  It was the first time we had seen green fields and orchards on our trip.  As we enjoyed the view, our guide explained to us that this land was fertile and had the potential to produce wonderful crops.  There was just one problem.  The Golan Heights was a highly disputed piece of land in Israel.   Wars had been fought over this territory.  So in an attempt to make the Heights undesirable to the opposition, the land had been heavily mined.
After giving us that bit of information, our guide invited us to get off the bus for pictures if we were interested but before we deboarded he strongly warned us, "do not step off the road."  Jim and I did climb off the bus but standing on the pavement I had an ominous feeling in the pit of my stomach.  I did not like knowing that we were just feet away from grave danger.  The signs all along the road only reinforced the feeling.  "Danger Mines!"

Danny, our tour leader, went on to explain that the military had maps showing where the mines were but because it was uncertain as to who would end up with the land, the government would not pay the hundreds of thousands of dollars to clear the mines and reclaim the beautiful, rich acreage.

As I thought back on this event, it reminded me of one of my favorite scriptures,  "The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” Deuteronomy 31:8

This week I learned that I have yet another physical set-back (the latest "mine," if you will, in the landscape of my health) which will require an invasive procedure to determine what is happening in my body.  In the midst of this latest news, I began to look for any place that I could find peace and a respite from the anxiety that has been washing over me.  The Deuteronomy verse came to my mind.  The Lord is going to go before me.  He has the map of my life and He will clear the way to take me through this most recent event safely without fear and discouragement.   He will never leave me alone on the road.  And because of that, I am choosing to have hope.

The Whisper

 

When my girls were young, we would sit in church and I would feel a tug on my sleeve. I would bend down and tilt my head toward my little one in her Sunday dress and black patent leather shoes as she whispered a question or request in my ear, "Mommy, when can we eat?" or "Do you have a pencil?" or "I need a tissue, Mom."

I also think of a time when Jim and I were at a solemn event and something tickled my husband. Before he ever got a chance to say anything to me, I knew what he was up to and I wouldn't make eye contact with him but it was too late. His whispered "one-liner" got the best of me and I melted into uncontrollable silent laughter. My shoulders were shaking and I was holding my breath and biting my cheek so as to not burst out during the very serious service.

And then there are the times when we whisper, "I love you"--that wonderful, intimate, life-giving phrase.

In the Bible, there is an account of a man named Elijah. He was a truth teller and the evil king and queen of his day wanted to do away with him. He ran for his life and hid in a cave. After sleeping and eating, Elijah was instructed that God was going to come and that he should look for Him.

It's recorded that, "a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks," but the Lord was not in the wind.  Then the scripture says, "there was an earthquake," but the Lord was not in the earthquake.  Next "came a fire" but the Lord was not in the fire.  "And after the fire came a gentle whisper."  The Lord was in the whisper.  The presence of God was so palpable that Elijah covered his face.

How many times have I looked for God to show up in a big, power-filled way?  "Please be obvious," I pray. How many times have I missed the wonderful sweet intimacy of the "whisper."  Whispers correct and instruct without embarrassment.  Whispers share one-on-one tenderness.  Whispers signal, "I am yours and you are mine."  Whispers say, "I love you."

In the Old Testament, Isaiah writes, "Give ear and come to me;   listen, that you may live."   My paraphrase of those words is, "tilt your head toward me and listen real carefully;  I have life-giving words to tell you."  God is in the whisper.