It was kind of like a scene out of the movie Aliens. I was sitting there watching my wife’s stomach pulse and bulge and move. However, it was not an alien struggling to bust out and wreak havoc on all those nearby. It was my unborn son stretching or going for a jog around the womb. We just happened to be in church when he was doing all these moves; maybe he likes it. Joy always says the he is very active during church. Either he likes it or he gets tired sitting still like other little boys, and wants to go run around or something. It is very exciting for us to see these little evidences of life. We feel the movements and anticipate the day when we will see him and hold him. I think it has been that way with so many parents through the years. I have thought about a few that I kind of identify with. Adam and Eve were very excited with the birth of Cain. I am not sure that we get all the emotion from some of our readings of the story. I think of the part when Cain is born and Eve says something to the effect of “I have gotten a man from the Lord.” Maybe she was looking back on the events of her life and thinking of the future. It might just be that she was remembering a promise that God had made her to send a Savior, someone who would crush the head of the Devil. Maybe when she looked at that little boy it gave her hope for the future. Is it the same with all parents? Do we all look at our children and think maybe they will be a doctor or a lawyer, or maybe they just might play in the NFL someday? This little boy on the way has definitely filled us with a sense of anticipation for the future.
Another story that I think about is the story of Hannah. Hannah’s story shows up in the book of the Bible that is named for her son, Samuel. I Samuel tells us that Hannah was unable to have a child. As a result of this condition, and the cruelty of others, Hannah was driven to tears. Month after month Hannah lived with this disappointment. It actually gets to the place where the story says, “In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the Lord” (I Samuel 1:10). I remember before Joy got pregnant with our daughter Bekah, that she wanted very badly to have a baby. This went on for a few months and we dreaded finding out again that we would have to just wait and try again. I think of those who have gone on like that for years, and my heart goes out to them. I do not know how long it was for Hannah, probably years. God did hear her prayers and gave her a son, Samuel. After such a trial, I think that she was all the more grateful for the birth of her son. Hannah responded to her gift from God by offering it (Samuel) back to God. She did not know at the time that this little boy would grow up to influence the kings of a great nation, Israel. She did not know that Samuel would speak for the Lord, and anoint a young man to be king whose name was David. She did not know so many things about his life and what it would be like, but she offers a great example for all of us parents. I worry, sometimes way too much, about what might happen. I wonder if Bekah or Luke will get hurt? Will they suffer in their lifetimes? I get carried away. I look to Hannah for advice, and I think she says “Trust the Lord with your children”.
One last story that I think about is the story of Mary. As a teenager she gets a message from an angel: “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the son of the most high.” Curiously she responds, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”(Luke 1:30-34) The answer was, through the work of the Holy Spirit God will do something amazing in you. The Son that will be born will be the Savior that the world needs and is looking for. Mary was overwhelmed with the news. After Jesus was born, Mary was looking at her little boy and the Bible says “…Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19) She was looking at a miracle, God in the flesh, and He was in her arms. We feel blessed with the miracle of childbirth and I sometimes wonder how this can be. I think a fitting description of what is happening was described to Jeremiah. God said to him “…I knit you together in your mother’s womb”. God is knitting away in Joy and we are waiting for the birth of our son. Mary had a son, whose name means “Savior”, and my biggest hope is that one day my son, will meet hers.
Another story that I think about is the story of Hannah. Hannah’s story shows up in the book of the Bible that is named for her son, Samuel. I Samuel tells us that Hannah was unable to have a child. As a result of this condition, and the cruelty of others, Hannah was driven to tears. Month after month Hannah lived with this disappointment. It actually gets to the place where the story says, “In bitterness of soul Hannah wept much and prayed to the Lord” (I Samuel 1:10). I remember before Joy got pregnant with our daughter Bekah, that she wanted very badly to have a baby. This went on for a few months and we dreaded finding out again that we would have to just wait and try again. I think of those who have gone on like that for years, and my heart goes out to them. I do not know how long it was for Hannah, probably years. God did hear her prayers and gave her a son, Samuel. After such a trial, I think that she was all the more grateful for the birth of her son. Hannah responded to her gift from God by offering it (Samuel) back to God. She did not know at the time that this little boy would grow up to influence the kings of a great nation, Israel. She did not know that Samuel would speak for the Lord, and anoint a young man to be king whose name was David. She did not know so many things about his life and what it would be like, but she offers a great example for all of us parents. I worry, sometimes way too much, about what might happen. I wonder if Bekah or Luke will get hurt? Will they suffer in their lifetimes? I get carried away. I look to Hannah for advice, and I think she says “Trust the Lord with your children”.
One last story that I think about is the story of Mary. As a teenager she gets a message from an angel: “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the son of the most high.” Curiously she responds, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”(Luke 1:30-34) The answer was, through the work of the Holy Spirit God will do something amazing in you. The Son that will be born will be the Savior that the world needs and is looking for. Mary was overwhelmed with the news. After Jesus was born, Mary was looking at her little boy and the Bible says “…Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” (Luke 2:19) She was looking at a miracle, God in the flesh, and He was in her arms. We feel blessed with the miracle of childbirth and I sometimes wonder how this can be. I think a fitting description of what is happening was described to Jeremiah. God said to him “…I knit you together in your mother’s womb”. God is knitting away in Joy and we are waiting for the birth of our son. Mary had a son, whose name means “Savior”, and my biggest hope is that one day my son, will meet hers.
