Written in February 2008.
For no particular reason our baby started to cry.
We had put her to bed not too long ago, and usually she will sleep through without incident. This time, however, she had begun crying – loudly.
I was at the computer right next to her room and Paula was in bed, so I went in and comforted Kylie and she settled. Thinking it might be a nightmare (do 6 month olds have nightmares?) I did what we usually do when there are nightmares in the house – I prayed a prayer of protection over her.
Now, God almost always answers prayers of this kind in our house, but for some reason this time he didn’t – unless his answer was to prod Kylie so she would begin crying again, because that’s what she did. And all her howling brought her mother to the room to see what was going on.
Well, I wasn’t going to let Paula get all the glory for settling her, so I did what needed to be done. I picked her up, sat in a chair and rocked her. This was no time for controlled crying. And it worked! I got immediate results. Kylie’s eyes began to droop and after a little while we deposited her sleeping form back into her cot where she slept for the rest of the night.
It occurred to me that these little crises help me to bond with Kylie far more than if I just palm her off to her mother. It’s almost as if Lylie learns who can be counted on to stick around until the crying, whatever its cause, comes to an end.
And then I looked at my relationship with God.
Often when I’m in crisis – disillusioned, hurt, angry or whatever – I don’t turn to God as much as I do to some distraction. TV is a good one, as is food, reading, sleeping… All these I know are there for me but what an insult to the God who is ultimate strength and comfort. I need to learn to turn to God first instead of other things, knowing that unlike fickle me, he is not a Father that palms his children off onto others but can be counted on to stick around until the crisis, whatever it is, ends.