Last night I watched a wonderful slideshow. Birthing photos. Mommies and Daddies and their babies on the day they came into the world. Moms breathing, Dads with concerned looks. And tiny, wrinkled, slimy little babies. I cried. I began to think of all my boys on this day. My oldest made us a family 15 1/2 years ago. Do I remember the pain? Yes. There is a reason it’s called labor! And, no. The pain pale in comparison to being overwhelmed with love for this little being!
For most of us, labor and delivery was the easiest part of parenting our children. Things start to get messy from here. The next few years bring snotty noses, exploding diapers, projectile vomit. Then we move to the applesauce in the hair, perfecting aim in the toilet and finger painting with who knows what. As they get older, the messes become more complicated and less slimy, especially in puberty. This stage does get a little stinky though. Nearly every Wednesday night after church the window is rolled down. The youth pastor has lots of fun games for them and he really wears them out (or winds them up?), but piling 5 of them in the van is a little more than I can handle. “OK! Who forgot the deodorant this morning?” And yet, we love them. We see past the spaghetti smeared face, the muddy jeans, all the messes, to see this beautiful being. We look at this little piece of ourselves, wipe the applesauce off the cheek, give him a big kiss, and say, “I love you more than you can imagine.” And it’s true.
#4 and #5 getting messy!
Is this how God sees us? We are such messy, complicated beings! We mess up, we fail, we get into things we shouldn’t. Maybe we can be just downright slimy. And then we think, “how can He love me? My life is so messy! I am not worthy.” Yet we are His children. And He loves us. He looks at us, wipes the mess away, and gives a big kiss. Then He says, “I love you more than you can imagine.” And it’s true!
This Great Adventure 