God is watching and is preparing to send me the angels and Saints to help me.
The other day – in the food court at the local shopping centre, I sent my second son to order his meal all on his own for the very first time.
Now, although he is eleven years old, that child is a worry-er. He has worried about everything and anything almost from the moment of his birth. And that means that when I ask him to try a new thing – like ordering his own meal for lunch without me doing it for him, he gets very very worried about it and needs lots of encouragement.
Now, this time, when he was asked to make the order, the primary worry was that he would forget what he needed to order. The secondary worry was that he would make a mistake with the payment. And the third and final worry was that he would get into trouble.
And so – after discussing each of these worries with my son, I sent him off to place his order at the counter and stood in a spot where he could not see me to observe him.
That first time, he was really worried and seeing that he was terribly insecure, I called on the help of his younger sister to help him to get through the process. And so, she dutifully and confidently walked up to him and helped him with his order so that he would not get confused or worried about it. After that first time, he has ordered his own lunch many times and has managed it alone each time. And today, as I was reflecting on that progress, I also began to think about what this means in relation to our earthly and eternal life.
You see, my middle son – in this story at least – is a soul seeking sanctification. He is worried about making a mistake and those worries interfere with his trust in his Eternal Father, Lord and God, who is represented by me in this story. You see, just as I trusted my son with this job and never left him, watching from afar, while he did not even realise, so too does God never leave us, continuing to watch us and send us help as required.
And just as I sent my daughter to help my son, so too does God send the angels and the Saints to help us too.
Because, though I love my son and would do anything for him and for his comfort and salvation, God loves us infinitely more. So, when I feel that God is asking of me something that is far beyond my ability, it is my responsibility to stretch up to God and trust in Him – He who is Prince of Peace – because He is always watching, even when I do not think He is there. And while He is watching, He is preparing to send me the angels and Saints to help me. That is what He is doing…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
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