Make All Things New

I found this in my journal recently. I had written this about four months ago. Now that we found out yesterday that we are expecting a baby boy in a few weeks, I thought I’d post this as a reminder of God’s sovereignty.

Yesterday, as Jill and I were walking together, she said she felt the baby kick (first time with this pregnancy – our fourth child).  I put my hand on her belly and didn’t feel much until she said, “Push down kind of hard and you’ll get it to move.”  I did and it did. (Referring to my unborn child as “it” never seemed strange until I typed the word.)  A surge of joy filled me as I felt the child move for the first time.  I was struck by how the baby responded to my pushing… my prodding… my provoking it.  I wondered if I was bothering my child.  Surely I was disrupting his or her environment and probably even made it uneasy to some degree.

Then I thought of how our Father in heaven sometimes has to provoke us for us to respond to him.  Unlike me pushing on Jill’s belly, the Father doesn’t need to wonder if he is bothering us or not for all he does is good.  Perhaps he stirs up our environment or bumps us around to remind us he is there and he cares.  Challenging times often remind us to lean on him and trust in his goodness.  Difficult situations don’t always make us comfortable, but they should always bring us comfort.