Do You Feel the Love?

Every now and then, I have a great idea for a blog post, but the words won't flow. So I change gears. Write something else.

And wait.

I have waited months.

This time, I only had to wait a week for God to finish my thoughts and leave me, again, in wonder at His love for us.

But, maybe we should start at the beginning…with sick littles and long staircases and twin mattresses on the floor...

Not so long ago, we lived in a home where the bedrooms were close. So close that despite being in this 24/7 job we call motherhood for almost nine years, I have rarely felt the need to sleep in my children’s rooms. Even when illness raged, I slept in my bed, they in theirs. And if they whimpered or called my name, I was by their side in seconds.

In our new home, our bedroom is on the main floor while the kids’ rooms are upstairs. We’re still in the same house. Still close.

But when the stomach bug hit a few weeks ago, a flight of stairs was too far away. So for several nights, I found myself “sleeping” on the trundle bed mattress we relocated to my son’s bedroom floor.

As I tucked him back into his bed after yet another race to the bathroom, the words from one of my favorite Psalms settled in my mind.

The Lord is near to the broken hearted.

I love the idea of God being near. And from my spot in the floor of James’s room, I could appreciate the concept of His nearness more than ever. When we are hurting, sometimes we need God to be nearer than near. When we are suffering and miserable, our need to feel His presence is more desperation than desire.

I thought about it for a while. Decided to write about it. But something was missing. . .

When it hit me, it blew me away.

Because while it’s true that James needed me, the real reason I was sleeping in his room was because I needed to be there. My little man was sick. It hurt me to see him suffer. I couldn’t bear the thought of him having to wait an extra second for my comfort.

Do you realize God feels that way about you? When life overwhelms. When pain stabs deep. When loved ones suffer. When you wish you could wake up and discover it was all a nightmare.

God sees.

God knows.

And God is near.

Sure, it’s for your benefit.

But it’s also for His.

But now thus says the LORD,
he who created you, O Jacob,
he who formed you, O Israel:
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name, you are mine.
² When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.
³ For I am the LORD your God,
the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.
I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you.
⁴ Because you are precious in my eyes,
and honored, and I love you...

(Isaiah 43:1-4a, emphasis mine, ESV)

Happy Valentine's Day - You are Loved!