Never Alone

TINY TOY BIKES

It is difficult to imagine that it was 15 years ago when my youngest daughter sold enough candy to win a prize.  From a gallery of toys and trinkets Holly selected a tiny bicycle – assembly required.  I remember her look of excitement as she patiently waited for her dad to find time to assemble the tiny bicycle. Although I usually tried to make myself available to my girls, this time I made her wait.

A full two weeks after my sweet girl asked for my help, I finally took the time to sit down with her and attempt assembly. My clumsy fingers were no match for the delicacy of this job. I broke a small piece that was necessary for the tiny bike to work. Already feeling a little guilt at having waited so long, I now felt the shame of failure. A small failure, maybe, but it felt big to me. I was just about to cry when Holly comforted me with these words, “that’s OK Dad; we can get another bike.” She really wanted to be with me more than she wanted the little toy bike.

In that moment I came to the frightening realization that I would not always be able to protect my girls from pain and disappointment. But God did not leave me in that condition. He came to me and reminded me that my only job was to teach my kids to put their hope in Him and He would take care of them. Malachi 2:15 says,

“Didn’t the Lord make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his. And what does he want? Godly children from your union.” (NLT)

I realized that there would come a day when my daughters wouldn’t want me to try to shelter them anymore. They wanted to grow to be strong, competent, godly women, and they did just that. And I am now so proud of the mature adults they have become. Our goal as parents is not to train children for worldly success, but to raise up children who put their full trust in the Lord.

I fully trust the God who inspired King David to write these words; “I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread.” (Ps. 37:25) God taught me to trust Him with my wife, then with my daughters, and now I will trust Him with my first granddaughter, too.

Growing and learning,
Pastor Steve