Today I went to see my thirty-six week old baby on an ultrasound. The baby was beautiful, but he was large! Our little guy is in the ninety-fourth percentile. I guess that I can’t call him “little” for much longer. They already estimated him as weighing over seven pounds. My wife deserves an award for carrying this big child at forty-three years of age. She glows as we meet with the doctors. She looks so cute with her prego-belly. I have to pinch myself and remember that being married to such an amazing woman is not a dream, it is my god-given reality.
The black, grey, and white images flashed across the screen as the sonographer measured every part. It reminded me of the passage that says, “You knit me together in my mother’s womb” (Psalm 139:13-14). Nothing accidental is happening in there. In the secret place of Molly’s womb, every cell, muscle fiber, and brain synapse is being formed. Right now, the days seem long as we wait for him to arrive.
Time slows down as we get ready to welcome a new human into the world. I tear up as I think of the moment when our baby will take his first breath. Molly will endure her “Super Bowl” once again and give birth to this child. Lord willing, He will open his eyes for the first time outside the womb and see us — his parents; his tour guides for this life. What a thought!
Children are not ours. They are God’s, on loan to us. If you’ve raised a child, or have been around a growing little one, you are aware of how fast time goes once you start raising them. The beginning seems slow, methodical, and special. Every moment past that point is like water through our hands. It goes so fast! Child-rearing is stewarding what God gave us. We are to return them to the Lord with a greater understanding of who God is and how we are to respond to Him. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 tells us what I am to do with these children while we have them. Simply put: teach them to love God with all their heart, with all their soul, and with all their strength.
This child is not mine. Shame on me if I ever think I own this child or had anything to do with his creation. In the same way, I must not assume that I am sovereign over his well-being. I have a duty to do, a command to obey, and God to show him. But I am not that God. I am merely a reflection of a more gracious Father, a more secure Provider, an eternal source of Love.
I deeply love having kids. But I hope I will enjoy showing my children Christ more than I enjoy merely raising my children. The days can feel long, but the weeks go by fast. Let’s show our kids Christ while we still have time.
