Ready, Willing, and Able

"Daddy, can you hold me for a minute?" It seems like such a simple question, an innocent question. And yet the question itself suggests doubt on the part of the child. Maybe daddy's too busy. Maybe he's angry. Who knows which of our actions will cause a child to doubt their value?

These kinds of questions demonstrate a child's growth in understanding. They show a growing awareness of responsibility and priorities. These questions hint a fear and uncertainty. Children who asks these questions know their parents have responsibilities and priorities, but they aren't sure where they fit into those. They want to know they still count.

Sophia's question made me think. At first I just wondered how she could even think I wouldn't hold her. We had spent better part of the afternoon cuddling on the couch, watching movies. Maybe she feared I didn't want to hold her anymore. Maybe she just needed me to hold her a little tighter or little longer.

Something hit me as I pondered on the question. My mind turned to prayer and the struggles I am having at the moment. I approach God with the same sort of timidness Sophia approached me. "God, can you help me?" The words are earnest and hinting of fear. I'm afraid that he is too busy or that my most recent struggle with sin has angered him.

As I scooped up my little girl in my arms, I couldn't help imagining my heavenly Father scooping me up in his arms. I felt him saying, "Abba's here, my little one." Jesus once told a crowd to consider the reality of parenthood. Human parents are fallen, frail creatures with sin prone hearts, yet they know how to love their children. How much more does our heavenly Father love us, especially when we consider that his holy, perfect, and compassionate.

 I think I need to mediate on God's willingness to love, and more importantly his willingness to show it. He has made us his children and given us the task of having and raising children, so that we might better understand what his Fatherhood means. We don't have to ask "if" he will hold us, only that he will. He is ready, willing, and able.