Learning in Phoenix

This is a special edition because spent 2 weeks in Phoenix with my nephew, Connor James Zimmerman. It was very cool to be in the hospital when he was born and hold him just a few hours after.

New moms have said that they learn a lot about God’s character through parenting and children. So far I found that to be true. Newborn babies are a good analogy to our relationship with God because they are completely helpless and dependent on their parents. Their parents absolutely love and adore them when they have done absolutely nothing to deserve that love. My nephew’s existence consists of sleeping, trying to eat, eating, and changing his diaper. But my sister and brother in law love him to death. And I do too. I mainly hold him when he is sleeping because he’s really only awake long enough to eat. But I don’t mind. I could just watch him sleep all day, and I do. As I was holding him and watching him sleep I noticed how much I just enjoyed spending time with him. He was just sleeping, not doing anything to please or entertain or even love me, but I completely love him. It reminds me of the way the Father loves us. We don’t need to come to him with these grand accomplishments or a list of needs. We don’t need to do anything, he just enjoys spending time with us.

Another aspect about my nephew has struck me as an analogy to how we often deal with God. My sister at times has had trouble getting him to breastfeed. He actually lost over 10% of his birth weight because he couldn’t latch on and get the milk he needed. When we are unable to depend on God for what we need, we start to deplete. He is the source that gives us nutrients and sustains us as my sister’s breast milk does for my nephew. Because he was losing so much weight they had to start giving him some formula to supplement the breast milk. To me this is God’s grace to us. He still takes care of us even when we reject him because he loves and cares for us. But formula is not as good as the breast milk’s nutrients. My nephew settles for less than what is best for him. My sister has said several times that he just wants that instant gratification. The bottle is much easier than the work it takes for him to get the breast milk. How indicative of our culture is this? We just want love, success, happiness the quick and easy way even if it’s not the best thing for us. Sometimes God’s way feels harder and takes longer to get the things we need, but God has better for us if we will accept it. And he is always willing to offer something better. My sister has not given up on breastfeeding because she knows her milk is better for him than formula. She has grace on him to give him the formula but she always tries what is better for him at first. That is how God treats us. No matter how addicted we may get to formula he is always there to offer something better if we will receive it.