Growing Pains

One night recently, after he'd been asleep several hours, my baby boy became very restless in his slumber.  After determining he had no fever, but watching him continue to moan, thrash and shudder in his sleep I grew concerned and asked his daddy to come observe for a few moments. 

We noticed he was reaching for his legs and squeezing them, while still caught in an uncomfortable state of not being awake, but certainly not fully asleep either. This is when I learned that earlier in the evening, he'd complained of his legs hurting. I'd been out of the house that evening, and daddy had done bedtime without me. Growing pains, we assumed, as this has been a sporadic occurance throughout this little one's life. 

Eventually, after some more flailing and when whimpers turned to real cries and tears, he awakened. He was so delirious from his sleep being interrupted so abuptly, that he couldn't effectively answer our questions about what was bothering him. He supplied several reasonings, some of which involved his legs, and others most definitely straight out of whatever dream he'd been having. It was clear he really didn't even know what was upsetting him so badly. Then, as if the whole scenario wasn't odd enough as it was, he decided to get up and walk around. Only when he stood, he fell over, grabbed one leg and started crying. His legs. They hurt. I rubbed them, and they hurt worse. Nothing soothed him for moments that seemed endless. By this point, I had been holding him for quite a while, save for the moment he attempted to walk out of this "nightmare."  Daddy went to retrieve the blessed Tylenol from the cabinet and I did all I knew to do. I held him, his tiny body completely encompassed safely in my arms. I rocked him back and forth, as the pain of sitting up in bed rocking, without back support, holding 41 pounds of thrashing boy child began to settle in my own body. I was tired and my heart hurt for him so much, but not once did I consider leaving him there to handle this on his own and walking away. Instead, through my own heartache (and backache) I whispered, "Mommy is here. I've got you. You're going to be ok. Everything is fine. Soon, it will be over, then the pain will stop and you can rest. Until then, mommy will hold you. I'm here. Everything is going to be fine."  Between tender kisses and whispered words doused with silent prayers from this mama's heart, my baby found rest. He found rest, just as mommy promised he would. 

Because, you see, I knew this was all just temporary. I've been down this road with him before. 

As I reflected on this, I thought of how often in my life, I've had a similar experience with my Heavenly Father. The times in life when the growing pains of my own circumstances have been too much to bear, and how He has so gently scooped me up in his arms, encompassing every part of me, and held me there for as long as it took.  I've wrestled, thrashed, cried and resisted, but He's never left me alone to handle it on my own. Even when the pain doesn't subside immediately, and it seems He isn't helping right away, He is always there, whispering to me, "Daddy is here. I've got you. You're going to be ok. Everything is fine. Soon, it will be over, then the pain will stop and you can rest. Until then, Daddy will hold you. I'm here. Everything is going to be fine." 

Because, you see, He knows this is all just temporary. He's been down this road with me before. 

And then, in a precious moment ordained in the heavens, this daughter finds her rest, securely nestled in the arms of her Father, who has never left her to fend on her own. 

Our daily circumstances may sometimes cloud our view of his faithfulness, but just as the light of the Sun cannot be blocked out entirely by a cloud filled sky, neither can the faithfulness of our Lord be sealed away by a few cloudy circumstances in life. Sure, clouds can hinder our view of the Sun, and cloudy circumstances in our lives may distract our immediate realization of God's faithfulness, but nonetheless He always shines through, heals us up and gives us rest. 

"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28