Startled by the silence, I shot up in bed and searched for blurry neon red lights that confirmed it was three in the morning, time to feed the baby. But Andrew, our then newborn son, hadn’t made a sound. Was something wrong? Or was he actually sleeping through the night?
Wavering between panic and joy, I felt my way down the hall to the nursery and leaned over my sweet baby’s crib. Listening for the sound of his breathing, I carefully rested my hand on his tiny chest to feel the gentle rhythm of its rising and falling.
Moonlight slipped through the blinds, helping me see he was perfectly fine.
Most sane mothers would have gone back to bed, but not me. I stood there for a while simply delighting in my child.
I desperately needed sleep. I should have gone back to bed, knowing Andrew might wake up any minute but my desire to be with my child erased all logic. I wanted to savor the love I felt for this little guy who set my days in motion with his cries and smiles.
Andrew developed a routine of sleeping through the night soon after, yet I would listen for him, hoping for a good excuse to see if he was okay. While he was sleeping, I’d sneak into his room because I wanted to be with him. To watch over him. Then I’d tiptoe into his big brother Joshua’s room and watch him slumber.
Looking at my children’s faces, I’d imagine the boys God was shaping them to become. Praying for them to know Jesus and love Him with all their hearts, I’d also ask God to calm their fears, fulfill their dreams, and establish their steps to follow His ways.
My sons are seventeen and nineteen now, but sometimes I still sneak into their rooms to pray over them and watch them sleep. They aren’t doing anything to make me feel proud or happy. In fact, they may have even driven me to my wit’s end that day, but it doesn’t matter. I delight in them because they are mine.
Zephaniah 3:17 reminds us that God feels the exact same way about you and me.
“For the LORD your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With His love, He will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.” (NLT)
I need this. This seeing myself as a child in God’s eyes. I need to be reminded that He wants to be with me. That He loves to watch over me. Not because I am doing anything for Him, but simply because I am His.
Your Heavenly Father is watching over you with His love, right now. In this moment, and countless others. He is there to quiet your fears and doubts. And to sing songs over you that are written just for you, describing the beautiful woman He’s created you to be, while gently leading your heart to know and rely on His love more each day.
What a great reminder for times when nothing’s going right, when we feel like the whole world is against us and nobody understands what we’re going through. I hope the next time you have one of those days you’ll remember that your Heavenly Father loves and delights in you — simply because you are His.
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Thank you for this beautiful encouragement. I also wanted to let you know your devotional “A Confident Heart” was a true blessing to me recently. Thank you for choosing to share God’s infinite love with others around the world.
I pray you’d know His deep delight in you today Anna. And thank you for letting me know how He’s loving on you through my A Confident Heart devotional. It’s hearts and notes like yours that keep me writing on the hard days.
Renee, your prayers are being answered. In reading Margaret Feinberg’s “Fight Back with Joy”, my eyes and heart are being opened to the joy He wants to bring us that I’ve been holding back by my decision not to praise Him when I feel overwhelmed, tired, grouchy, grief-struck. This morning I chose to praise Him in my grouchy, jetlagged, tired state and in doing so I saw my girls respond in joy also. God is also confirming my one word for 2015: “choose”. Last year I gave my heart back to God, accepting His grace. This year I will CHOOSE to follow Him, by choosing to praise Him and sing with joy, even when I don’t feel like it.
Thank you for your prayers, words and godly encouragement.
Great thanks for all your blessings through your daily 365 Jesus Today inspirational day brighter . Please can you give me every day inspirational prayers through this my email address.
I feel isolated and I also am trying to have a closer relationship with Jesus. Now that I have an iPhone and iPad, I am finding ways to help me connect with the Lord. Thanks for the support
Jesus, I pray for Gail and her deep desire to grow closer to you. I pray that You would supply her with constant reminders of Your love and doses of your truth throughout her day.
Amen! Thank you for this great and sweet reminder… 🙂
I’m going to close my eyes today and picture my Heavenly daddy leaning in and watching over me today. I pray that today’s post will help us all savor His delight in us.
Thanks Renee, this is timely inspiration for today. God Bless
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Good morning Ifeoma, thank you for your encouraging note.
Renee,
Over the years, I have grown to know that I don’t need to strive to “earn” God’s love – that He, as you point out so beautifully, loves me just because I am His. Lately, the enemy, has tried to draw me into lamenting the things I didn’t do well as a parent (my children are grown), but through posts like yours, God reminds me that through the good, bad and the ugly, I am still loved and delighted in. What a blessing!
Always,
Bev
Me too, Bev. And you know what? When we live loved we realize it’s never too late to do what we wish we’d done differently. Maybe we can’t rewind time, but we can make new memories. It’s never too late to love well.
And just so you know, I blow it ALL.THE.TIME with my kids. The assurance of His unfailing love helps me remember to go back to ask for grace and forgiveness. So grateful for good Daddy to teach us how to be good mamas, huh?
You could have been writing a story about me in those first lines. I was holding my breath with you as you made sure he was okay — hoping the story wouldn’t take a turn for sadness. I imagine God holds His breath, kind of like that, at every crucial decision we make in life. Will it be for Him or against Him? Are we spiritually breathing or not? I was blessed by your words today and these responses. Thank you!
Jenni @ http://www.genuected.com
Thank you so much for your note and words Jenni. Such a good reminder of how feels about us as He watches over us. Breathing deeply of His love today.
So sweet to remember those early days with my four little ones, now all adults. Those were dear moments and I so remember how surprisingly strong my heart’s pull for those little ones was. I remember checking for their breathing, praying and being reassured a thief hadn’t come in the night to steal them. And gazing on them as they slept – such a beautiful sight. Thanks for the encouragement remembering He loves and watches over me just the same, delighting in me because I am His. I have just gotten home from the hospital following an unexpected fall off of my horse ,which broke my hip. The Father’s love was all around me during that time after the fall, in emergency, before and after surgery in the hospital. Now the convalescing time at home has started – 8 weeks or more of crutches and lots of quiet time. Normally a very active person, I will remember to sit and enjoy His delight in those hard moments when I’m frustrated by all I am not able to do. Lots of time to be with Him. Thank you.
Wow, that must have been scary and oh so painful. I just prayed for you and your recovery and for these 8 weeks of rest to be pregnant with God’s presence and love, Ivy.
Hi Renee – this is one of my favorite verses, & you expanded on it superbly! I’d love to print or copy/paste this to send to my Mom. She does not use a computer, but will open her mail, & I think it would encourage her. Could i have your permission to do this? Thank you!
This was a very sweet and uplifting message. Thank you so much for allowing God to share through you.
This gives me such comfort today to be reminded that our heavenly Daddy delights in us just as we are, not for what we do, but because we are His. Thank you, Renee.
Renee–this brought back memories of doing the same thing. In fact, when our first-born slept through the night for the first time, I made my husband check on her as I was sure something awful had happened. As they grew and challenged us, I always snuck into their rooms once they were asleep–just to gaze at them and remember how sweet they really were. That gave me strength to get through another day. I teach childbirth classes, and I encourage expectant parents to do the same thing–especially when they have a colicky baby. Those little ones look so precious when they are sleeping. And the heart melts all over again. Thanks for a great post!
This is beautifully comforting on several levels. With children now 30, 26 and 24 plus 2 son-in-laws and 2 grandsons. Well. I still wake at 3 am and think of them and long to see them sleeping peacefully. Your prayers for your sons touch my heart with simple words for the things I still desire for all of them. And then to think that God Himself watches over not only them but ME!! Lovingly and tenderly through the watches of the night. So sweet. Thank you for words of assurance and grace <❤️
Oh Renee, I used to (ok, still do!) do this all the time. My boys are mine, and I love them so. Its tough for me not to be able to fix every little thing for them, knowing God has them on their own journey and all I can do is be there to guide and pray. That’s a tough one for me. And mine are only 5 and 9! I’m so thankful that God loves me just because I’m his and he redeemed me. So thankful. My goal this year is to live redeemed. That means so many different things to me, like throwing guilt out by the curb with the trash and not beating myself up about things I wish I did differently. I’m so blessed that God made me just as I am and he loves me so. Thanks for sharing your heart today!
What a beautiful post and reminder, Renee! I used to love watching my boys sleep when they were babies. Took tons of pictures of their little backsides in the air. 🙂 Even at 10 and almost 12, I still sneak into their rooms at night and press a kiss onto their heads. Even when it was a hard day with them.
I love the reminder that we don’t have to do anything to earn God’s love. He just loves us, delights in us, and sings over us. Just because. This truth has revolutionized how I see myself and others in my life.
Great post!
Renee,
What a great illustration. As the mother of 5 littles ones whose beds I have stood over time and again, I can see it so clearly. So now I turn to gaze to His and bask in the sweet communion of our love.
I love your mama heart!! Praying you can feel His eyes on you and His absolute delight {in} you today!
This is one of my favorite verses – thank you for expanding on it in such a wonderful way! I am wondering if I can copy & paste it for my Mom. She doesn’t use a computer, but I think would find great encouragement from this. Please let me know if I have permission to do that! Thank you!
Zephanian 3:17 Is so true and true because at times I go through spiritual choas and I need to be arrested with confirmation my wonderful, mericul, and faithful Father loves me.
Thankyou. I’ve had a dissapointing day. Got picked last. Again. No confidence at all. But still God loves me. I’m not a good ambassador for him.
Wonderful encouragement!
I so needed to read this today, thank you for reminding me whose I am and who is watching over me 🙂 Zephaniah 3:17 is one of my favorite scriptures!
Exactly what I needed to hear. Thank you.
Thank you for sharing such a beautiful illustration of God’s love!
I kept my daughter home with me today bc she was a little under the weather. We spend a wonderful 30min cuddled on the couch looking at all the pictures of her growing up…she’s only two, but I still had LOADS. As we scrolled through the 100s of pictures, I remember doing the very same thing you wrote about. Some of my favorite moments were when she would fall asleep in my arms. I would have so many things needing to be done, yet all that mattered was holding her in close.
Love picturing you holding your sweet baby girl while she slept, Heather!! I miss those days.
Thanks so much for this encouragement about God loves for us!! I’ve been overwhelmed lately along with people pretending to be my friend and being negative and hateful towards me and this was right on time. Anytime I feel like I have nobody on my side, God always reminds me of his unconditional love. It really helped me at this particular season in my life. God bless you!
I am particularly touched by this. Interestingly, I opened to this page yesterday but failed to read any of the devos. Last night in our prayers, God asked us to declare over our children that He rejoices over them with joy & singing. Coming to this page today & reading the passage from Zeph brings it all home. That God is in our midst, Mighty One , will save, rejoicing over us with gladness, quietening us with His love & will still rejoice over us with singing. No matter our years, we still need the tender love of our good God Who desires to satisfy us with His love. He knows every fear, spoken or simply pondered in the heart. I am glad that He loves me because I am His. He is the only Father that has children. There are no grand or great-grand children for our God. To His we are His children once we come to Him for salvation. Be you 90 or 9. You are His child. Very soothing & quite comforting. Thanks. It was a wonderful piece.
Thank You & Blessings to You Renee!
Renee,
Last year was one of those “continued whole world is falling apart” one problem after another. Through it all I continued to pray and seek God. In a sense it brought my hubby and I closer to God than before!
Sometimes I believe God gives us problems or sticky situations so that He can bring us back to rely on Him for strength!
Blessings 🙂
These devotions are truly God sent..I suffer from depression and often feel useless and unworthy of all love, especially the Fathers..Today has been one of those days..I have been trying to be still so I might hear from Him, to no avail..Silent hours of just being with His book in front of me trying to see..As I decided to check my email and take a break, here it is. Even when I feel useless and unworthy, through you His word reminds me how much He desires just to be with me, no strings attached.. He loves me simply because I am His..Thank you so much for allowing God to use you as a vessel for so many of us..May God continue to bless you sweet sister..
Allison,
I pray you will always know how much God loves us (you)! He did not spare His only son to die a horrible death for us! We are more precious than anything!
Prayers that you will have more good days and feel His loving arms around you!
Thank you so much Beth for your encouraging words. It means a great deal to have sisters in Christ like you to share with and be encouraged by..I have spent my day in silence, reading and meditating on Gods word. I do know how much He loves us, that’s what makes it so difficult not to be in control of common sense emotion. I have thanked God for you and asked Him to bless you today.
Your sweet post brought to mind the joy I experience these days with our toddler granddaughter. I have fun just watching her play! And I love making up songs to sing over her, just to see her smile. Thank you, Renee, for pointing out that God feels that ferocious parental (and grand-parental!) love for each of us. It’s a glorious affirmation, isn’t it.
@ Marion…honey you not unworthy. You are the head and NEVER the tail. You are God’s ambassador for courage. You got…..stop speakinh death over yourself. Shout and speak life. Pray for courage and loving life!
I’m new to this site yet I know that nothing happens by coincidence. I have 2 sons age 39 and 23 and being a single mom, I did the best I knew how in rearing them. Even though this is an old post it really blessed my soul.