One custom of our church community includes the babies and toddlers. Toward the end of the worship service, many parents collect their little ones and bring them to the sanctuary for the closing praise songs.
When our two-year old granddaughter, Elena, arrives, she starts out in Mommy’s arms, then clambers to Daddy, then over to Papa (my husband, Steve), and finally to Nana—that’s me.
Last Sunday she was particularly affectionate—arms around my neck, head nestled on my shoulder. Every now and then she’d lift her head to give me a kiss on the cheek. I held her close and kissed her silken hair.
(Who could resist snuggling with this?!)
Please understand: Elena is a typical toddler. She knows what she wants and when she wants it (usually NOW!). Her expressive cries can be quite vociferous. But those traits of stubbornness and impatience—seen in most toddlers–don’t diminish my love for her. Not a bit.
I reveled in that moment of tenderness at church, while swaying to the music and singing of our love for God. In my mind’s eye, I saw myself as the child, held in the close embrace of my Father, who lovingly forgives my sins and casts them as far as the east is from the west.
What an astounding privilege he grants us—to participate in close, familial communion with him, the King of the Universe!
Day in and day out our glorious and powerful God draws near to us:
- Through creation. Just this morning, he draped pink cloud-ribbons across a crystalline sky, turning our minds to him and his infinite genius. Almighty God orchestrates every intricate aspect of life on our planet, yet we can know him as our gracious and compassionate Father.
- Through his Word. Just this week I had occasion to study the word, abide, found in John 14:6. “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever” (KJV). First I looked up the word in the dictionary, and discovered abide means much more than just being with someone. Abide also includes persevering under (!) and tolerating (!), in addition to remaining in one place, to continue or endure. I had to smile at the tongue-in-cheek humor. And I prayed, “Oh, Lord, thank you for loving me that much!
- Through people. A young woman at our new church has been enthusiastically friendly. And though I’ve told her I appreciate her kindness, I doubt she can fully understand how her interest, hugs, and effervescence have ministered to me. God draws near with his joy each time we meet.
- Through circumstances. Hugs and kisses from a toddler are just one precious example that makes me mindful of God’s love for me.
* * * * * * * * * *
Oh, Father, I shake my head in wonder to think
You long for us to be your familial friends.
I praise you for your abundant, gracious love,
Motivating you to reveal yourself
Through creation,
People, circumstances,
Your word, and more.
In fact, you are intimately involved
In every moment of our lives.
Thank you for blessing us
With your abiding presence,
Even though it requires of you
Great tolerance and perseverance!
We cling to you, our Source of
Strength, wisdom, and provision.
You are with us and in us,
Always drawing us closer to you.
Thank you for never giving up
And never letting go.
(2 Corinthians 6:16, 18; Psalm 103:8; Psalm 19:1-4;
Matthew 5:14, 16; Psalm 92:4; 2 Timothy 3:16-17;
Psalm 139:1-5; Zephaniah 3:17; James 1:17;
Isaiah 41:10; 1 Corinthians 3:16; James 4:8;
Philippians 1:6; John 10:28.)
(Photo credits: Nancy Ruegg, and http://www.wallpaperup.com.)
From the Inside Out 
Nancy, what a lovely way to end a worship service! Elena is beautiful and I’m so glad you can share those special moments with us…..but I must admit you and Steve are dearly missed. Love to you both.
Oh, thank you, Ruth. Every choice has its pros and cons, right? Choosing to live near our kids meant not living near some dear friends — like you. But I think of my church friends and writers’ group friends there in Florida VERY often!
Beautifully said.
Thank you, Nikki!
I love this Nancy! And who could resist snuggling with your beautiful Elena!! ❤️ I loved the comparison to God and U.S.!us… Amazing!!
Thank you, Lisa. You are so right: God’s loving involvement in our lives is truly amazing!
Wonderful post!! Thanks, Nancy!!! Love the picture of your granddaughter! So special!
Thank you, Ginny! So delightful to see your name in my inbox. Trust you’re enjoying balmy weather in FL — not too hot — so you can enjoy the outdoors. And I pray you, Bob, and family are all thriving!
Thanks Nancy, you bring such joy as you show us how special the family. is .My daughter Denise is with me and Grandndaughter Ellen, what joy fills my house each day, as we have devotions together, what a priveledge. How blessed I feel. Your baby is darling is so sweet, can’t wait to go to Ma. in May to get to hug my the little darlings. You and Steve are special. Thanks for your blogs. Love Tedi
I’m so glad you, too, are enjoying the blessings of family, and thank you again for being a faithful reader, Tedi. I greatly appreciate you loyalty–and love! Sending some back to you, Nancy
What a joy to worship with your family and especially with a young one. I know I love it that our three grandkids often sit with us at church. I do appreciate it, hugs and even the melt downs. wouldn’t trade that at all!
You’re right: worshiping with family augments the pleasure. (I’m impressed you can even appreciate the melt downs! 🙂 )
So, so sweet…. Thank God He continues to call us. Encouraging and inspiring words 🙂
Thank you, Jody, and AMEN: “He continues to call us” unto himself–each and every day!
Loved reading this Nancy. Last night I was putting my granddaughter to bed. I wanted to sit and look into her precious face for hours. I told her how much I loved her….and she told me how much she loved me….and you are right. I think it is a picture of how God looks at us and how he loves our adoration of him. So reading this now makes that moment even more precious.
Your story makes me smile because of your similar experience and because you know exactly what I was trying to express! Thank you, Carol!
Thanks for sharing the picture of your precious granddaughter. A beautiful little girl also as always thanks for your thoughts.
Janet
On Mon, Jan 25, 2016 at 4:08 PM, From the Inside Out wrote:
> Nancy Ruegg posted: “One custom of our church community includes the > babies and toddlers. Toward the end of the worship service, many parents > collect their little ones and bring them to the sanctuary for the closing > praise songs. When our two-year old granddaughter, Elena,” >
Her personality is as cute as that smile, too! Thank you, Janet! So appreciate your encouragement.
Thanks so much for sharing the picture of beautiful Elena. She is precious and I’m glad that you are getting to spend so much time with her. Did you take that picture of the sky? Just lovely. And I imagine you wrote that poem, right? It is wonderful. I particularly enjoyed how much of yourself you shared with us in this post. The Lord has blessed you with such gifts! Yesterday Mom and I went shopping with Brook and Dacota and Dacota’s 3-month old baby boy David. He proved to be a good little shopper. I lavished him with intermittent kisses and loving words during the course of the afternoon. When you have a baby or child in your life…you can gaze at him or her all day long! Your message in this post reminded me that He looks at me with immeasurable love… Even with all of my flaws. And His patience with me knows no bounds. He is always reminding me not to be afraid. He must have to remind me of that at least once a day. But he patiently does so.
No, I didn’t take the photo of the sky. ‘Should have grabbed my phone Sunday morning to capture “our” pink cloud-ribbons. (These are similar, though.) As for the poem–I’m honored you consider those lines as such! In reality, it’s my effort to segment prose into bite-sized, single thought-sized bits. Because you, too, have little ones in your life, you know exactly the lavish love babies engender in our hearts! Praise God for his lavish love, too, expressed in so many ways. Thank you, Cheri, for your thoughtful comments!
Nancy
I love reading your posts. They are really from the heart and you give God the glory. We all need to be God centered and not self centered so we can have a love relationship with our God.
Hello, Maryann! What a delight to see your name in my inbox. Thank you so much for your encouragement. It is MUCH appreciated!