daddy!!!

So late last night Lillian freaked me out. During the early morning hours Lillian woke up and suddenly screamed out “mommy”… and then “daddy, daddy”… and like a knee jerk reaction I leaped out of my bed and scurried over to Lillian where she was found on her hands and knees crying out to me. I grabbed Lillian who had crocodile tears streaming down her little cheeks. Hugged her. Kissed her. Hugged her some more. Letting out little huffs and puffs of air, she slowly began to regain her composure. I sang her a song or two. Told her it was okay. Rocked her a bit and as I was putting her back into her tiny bed, she cried a bit as she knew I was in the process of leaving her room so she could get back to sleep. I kissed her cheek again. And then she quietly said “mama” and at first I wanted to tell her that I was “daddy” and then realized what she was really saying is that I sound, feel, and love her like her mother does.

She sees mommy in me when I care for her.

Not to get overly spiritual here but I gotta say that I’m convinced the main purpose for children is not just legacy but that these little ones teach us what it means to have God as a spiritual figure in our lives.

A bad dream. A scary moment. A really rough or vulnerable place. A lonely plead for help. If that doesn’t remind you of your own existence at times in this world then you must not really be very human. That God comes to us; that he’s always available and that he wants to embrace us in those very earth shaking moments when we gasp for air and ask for help is really a very significant point about God in Scripture. He’s faithful. He’s loving (Ex. 34:6; Ps. 138).

While we often talk about the strong and masculine almighty God, I often wonder if we’ve forgotten the caring and gentle God that cares for us like a mother does for her child in the late hours of the night (when things aren’t going so well for us). I wonder if it’s that gentle leader that we often need more of from time to time.

Perhaps its more of a complement, then, to have been mistaken as mommy last night

OR

Maybe it’s just that mommy’s simply the best!