More snake please!

The other night I experienced one of those "ah-ha!" moments in my faith.  It was one of those times where God's Word suddenly becomes so real to you that you almost collapse to the ground in tears of joy because you fully understand the love that God has for you.  It all started with my son, Jack's, nightly bedtime routine...

Jack

The day had been long, I was exhausted, and I wanted nothing more than for Jack to go to sleep quickly.  Only he had other plans.  We did our normal routine of read a couple of books, then read a Bible devotion, pray, and sing.  Usually, Jack will wind down after this "process" and fall asleep rather quickly.  On this night however, Jack's energy level was superhuman and the wrestling match began.  It is amazing how a two year old can keep you so busy and move so quickly within a seven foot by five foot space!  Though I was losing all patience and becoming more exhausted by the second, I never treated Jack harshly.  Finally, he began to slow down and rest.  About the time I thought he was going to fall asleep he uttered the last word that I wanted to hear that night, "Juice!"  This indicated that Jack wanted a drink before he fell asleep.  So, I pulled my lazy behind out of the bed and wearily walked to the kitchen to prepare a small cup of juice for my son.  Giving the sippy cup to my son, I laid down again thinking that now he would go to sleep.  As he enjoyed his drink, I was just on the brink of nodding off when I heard the word again, "JUICE!"  I thought there was no way that Jack could have drank all that juice already, but upon inspecting the cup he sure enough did.  Even worse, he was not yet satisfied.  Again and again he announced, "Juice...juice...JUICE!"  My exhaustion was about to win the war and deny my son the simple pleasure that he sought.  Yet something inside me compelled me to get up and take care of Jack's need.  This time I literally nearly dragged myself to the kitchen to refill the sippy cup when immediately a verse of Scripture popped into my mind almost as if God were audibly speaking to me:

Matthew 7:9-11

Which of you, if his son asks for bread will give him a stone?  Of if he asks for a fish will give him a snake?  If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!



At first I wondered where that thought came from, but then I began to fully understand.  Here I was in the middle of the night, exhausted beyond normalcy, taking the time to fulfill a simple request for the comfort of my two year old.  Why?  Because I LOVE him.  I do.  I would give my life for my son, so a simple cup of juice is a no-brainer.  And in that moment, I got a glimpse of how much God the Father loves little-ol-insignificant me.  God's love for us as individuals is truly absurd, yet is is as real as the keyboard that I am currently typing on.  We hear the phrase, "God loves you" so many times that its redundancy disconnects us from its reality.  God does love every one of us humans in a way that is unique to each of us.  The question is, how are we going to respond to that love?  Take it for granted?  Ignore it?  Take advantage of it?  Or will we embrace it joyfully and share it with others?  I praise God for His illustration for me that night.  When I returned to give Jack his juice, I laid there and watched him fall asleep.  God's message to me that night filled me with enough joy and energy that now I was the one barely able to shut my eyes and rest.  Thank you Lord for you daily blessings...the ones I ask for AND the ones I overlook!