Holding His Hand

Good morning It is Tuesday, April 20, 2021.

My only daughter celebrates a birthday tomorrow. I have 3 sons as well. Three of my four children celebrate a birthday in April. My husband and I used to jokingly refer to April as "our broke month"

My only girl. She is a treasure to me. And tomorrow she will turn 35 years old!

We have butted heads more times than I can remember. As a small child she was stubborn to a fault. We had battles of the will that lasted hours. At about the age of 8 or 9 months old she decided she no longer wanted to be her car seat. It was not easy going anywhere with her after that.

I can remember one time, she was about 18 months old, we were driving and I looked in my rearview mirror. She was standing next to her car seat! One arm draped over the back of her car seat with a look of sweet contentment and accomplishment. I am still not sure how she got out but the restraints were tightened after that.

When she was just 2 years old she would go in her room and change her clothes after I had dressed her for the day. Sometimes multiple times in a morning. She had her own ideas and she fought fiercely for her independence.

If I wanted her to hold my hand, she would throw herself on the floor. If I wanted her to sit still, she wanted just the opposite. If she was sent to her room for being naughty, the entire neighborhood could hear her disapproval Yes, she was a stubborn one!

I think we are often like my daughter when it comes to our Heavenly Father: stubborn.

How often have I butted heads with God? How often have I showed, by my words and actions, that I wanted to do things MY way? How often have I crawled out of the safety of His arms with a look of defiance? How many times have I thrown off the robe of righteousness after He has draped it around my shoulders? The answer is, too often! Too often has He longed for me to sit on His lap, be still and just listen to Him. Too often He has invited me to just hold His hand.

John 10:28 ESV "I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand."

When my daughter was just a toddler, I took her hand at church. That was the last thing my little independent one wanted. While my hand was still clasping hers, (tightly) she threw herself to the ground. The scream that came out of her mouth...I will never forget. You see, in fighting to be free from me, the ligament in her elbow slipped out of place. It's called Nursemaid's Elbow and it is not fun! Not fun for anyone involved.

We rushed her to the doctor's office, her screaming all the way. With a quick, gentle move to the arm, all was righted again in our world and just like that it was over. I wiped away her tears and she fell asleep on her daddy's shoulder.

Too often in my life have I let go of my Father's hand. To often have I ended up in a world of hurt, but just like a loving earthly parent, God is there to put it all back in place. To take the pain away, to wipe away our tears and give us hope for tomorrow.

2 Timothy 4:18 ESV "The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen."

We, like He, want to protect our children. We want to train them and teach them and protect them. But too often we, as children, have entirely different ideas. We think we know better.

Isaiah 64:8 NKJV "But now, O Lord, You are our Father; We are the clay, and You our potter; And all we are the work of Your hand."

Trust Him! If we could grasp the vastness of His knowledge and know that God is there for us. If we could hold fast to the knowledge that He wants us to live for eternity with Him, how much easier our life on earth would be!

God says in Psalm 91:14-16 "Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name. When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”

Hold fast! May God bless you today! And remember, Jesus is coming soon!