The Epiphany of a Toddler

Our family has a bright, little shiny spot in our lives and her name is Becca. She is a blonde-haired bundle of fun, laughter, and fabulousness! She's about two years old and we had the privilege of babysitting her today. She likes me (I have bubbles), but she really likes my kids and they like her right back. However, she has a special thing with my sweet hubby, Brock. He's the one who ALWAYS gets hugs and kisses (and sometimes he's the only one). What can I say? He's got a way with the ladies! :o) As she was hanging with us today, she had the startling realization that I am a mommy, too, like her mommy. Charis called for me and Becca looked at me like, "Whoa! Wait. A. Minute." Then she said, "You a mommy?!" as she furrowed her brow. It was incredibly funny to watch her process this new information.

Later in the morning, the situation came around again, only this time the subject was Brock, or as Becca would say, "Bok." She had the same startled look on her face when we explained to her that I am Charis and Isaiah's mommy and Brock is Charis and Isaiah's daddy. She looked at me, then looked at Brock, then looked back at me and said "BOK?! Daddy?!" with a slightly more intense furrowed brow.

Her mind was officially blown! She seemed ok after a while with the thought of me being a mommy, but she couldn't get over the fact that Bok is a daddy. In her mind, that was just craziness.

We do that, too, though. Don't we? With God, it's easy to think of Him as high and lofty, but we struggle sometimes to understand that He is "Abba" or "Father" and He wants us to relate to Him as such. Many people struggle with this because they didn't have a godly father who was a good example. Some fathers do horrible things to their children. If that is children's only image of a father, they will shy away from relating to God or seeing Him as a Father. (So remember that, all you dad's out there. Daddies are human and everyone makes mistakes, but the way you treat your children is spiritually important.)

I was very blessed to have a godly, loving, and patient father. Because of the relationship I have with my dad, I can easily imagine myself just crawling up in God's lap, giving Him a big hug, and telling Him all about my day. I can also imagine God lovingly correcting and disciplining me when necessary. Even so, it is hard for me to marry the concepts of God being my (Heavenly) Father and all the other incredible names and attributes I've learned about and meditated on these past few weeks.

I feel very much like little Becca trying to reconcile the fact that God is more than one thing. In fact He's all the things I've learned, Father, and many more things I've yet to discover. Even though God can not entirely be understood, He wants us to embrace every part of Him that we can...especially the intimate title and relationship of Father.

That would mean that He wants to love us, take care of us, provide for us, "kiss our boo boos" (be our Comfortor), nurture us, teach us, and provide us with a home where we are always welcome. That's what dads "should" do. That would mean that as His children, we respect, honor, and obey Him, trust His provision and care, and love Him in return.

See for yourself...

Romans 8:15-17

15 So you should not be like cowering, fearful slaves. You should behave instead like God's very own children, adopted into his family -- calling him "Father, dear Father." 16 For his Holy Spirit speaks to us deep in our hearts and tells us that we are God's children. 17 And since we are his children, we will share his treasures -- for everything God gives to his Son, Christ, is ours, too. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.  

Let that one bake your noodle for a while. :o)

Snot Bubbles

As you discovered in my last blog, I am "football challenged." I can admit it. For the first few years of my married life, I rebelled against football mainly because it felt like I had been dropped off in a foreign country with no way to understand the language. Graciously, my husband tried to help me. For Christmas one year (yes, you read that correctly), he bought me a book about football so I could learn. Naturally, my first reaction was, "Really?! You bought ME a book about football?! You're just joking....where's my real present? Oh...this is...it. You're serious? I'm sorry. What a, um, thoughtful gift."

It actually turned out to not be so bad. The book was called, of all things, Snot Bubbles and was written by a woman for women who just don't get it (that would be me). The best part about it was that it was short. I was determined to read it and do my best to understand.

Insert the shocking part....

I began to grasp the general concept and even memorized some players' positions and their job in the game. I felt like I had been given a football/english dictionary with which I could communicate in this new foreign land. TOUCHDOWN!! (That's 6 points by the way.) I could at least talk about football with my husband and understand a little bit of what I was watching on television (even thought I'd rather be crocheting toilet paper cozies).

My daughter has recently taken a bizarre interest in football that is really out of character (i.e. anything but typical). She was asking many questions that I couldn't answer so I shared Snot Bubbles with her. She began pouring through the book, memorizing facts, and then proceeded to lay in the floor with her father watching games and asking football questions all day on Saturday. As I began to question who her real mother was, I was immediately humbled and awestruck.

She was reading Snot Bubbles to take the initiative to learn about her father so they can relate, communicate, and connect on a deeper level. She values her relationship with her father and just wants to be with him and enjoy what he enjoys WITH him.

What a beautiful picture of our relationship with our Heavenly Father! We don't read His word because we have to or because that's what "good Christians" do. We do it to take the initiative to learn about HIM so we can relate, communicate, and connect on a deeper level. Our relationship with God is a precious gift with the promise of being with him in heaven, but we can also enjoy Him and what He enjoys here on earth. Have you connected with your Father today?

Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.