Baby Bliss . . . um, not so much!
Babies! Babies! Babies! It seems like there are new babies everywhere! My daughter has a baby. My daughter’s friends are all having babies. Young women in my business are having babies. My cat has babies and now the Royal family has a new baby. Can’t you just imagine what is going on inside Kate’s hospital room? I imagine it is not like a hospital room we have ever seen. It is probably grand and ornate. Can’t you see beautiful Kate in a flowing ruffle gown as they bring the future king and place him in her arms? He won’t drool or spit up or have colic! No! He is a member of the Royal family! When you were expecting, what did you envision your life with a baby to be like? Did you imagine you would immediately be engulfed with an overwhelming love? Did you picture you and your husband dressed in linen just staring aimlessly into your baby’s eyes? Did you assume you would agree on every aspect of parenting and move forward into a blissful life? Did you envision your new life to be perfect?
What Happened? Our expectations were so high – but our reality was very different. Life with a baby is HARD! The baby can’t tell you WHY she is screaming. She will not sleep while you do. Oh, but rest assured, if you have to get in the shower to get ready for an appointment, she is sure to pass right out! Babies, spit up and even throw up all over you AFTER you are dressed for work. They poop and poop and poop everywhere! They wake you up when you need to sleep…so badly. And they cry and cry and cry – especially in confined areas like the car. I remember one of my friends saying, “Sometimes I dream of just pulling over and sitting the car seat on the side of the road and just driving away in my peacefully quiet car”. (She would never really do that! But if you have been there – you totally understand that dream.)
In spite of all of that, babies are a GREAT BLESSING! Yes they are! They bring so much joy and happiness into our lives! They are a miracle; a gift created by God just for you. We are overwhelmed with love for this little being. They rock our world and make our life have great meaning. But…on those days when our expectations don’t even come close to matching our reality – we sometimes feel like a failure – like maybe something is wrong with us. That feeling can be present in any situation – not just having babies. Maybe your marriage is not what you envisioned. Maybe your children are teenagers and you are experiencing struggles with them you never imagined. Maybe you desire children and that has not become your reality. Maybe it’s your career, your house, your family that is nothing like you envisioned.
Oh sweet friend, take a breath and calm your thoughts and cravings. Let’s ask our self…Why is it so easy to see and dwell on anything that is less than we desire? Why is it so easy for us to turn little things into really big things that steal our joy and deny us the ability to see our blessings? Why do our thoughts run rampant with our disappointments? “Why will she not sleep? Why does he spit up all the time? Why can’t my husband be more romantic? Why can’t we have a new house? Why didn’t I get that job?” We are all flawed, aren’t we? Our expectations may not become our reality, but… our reality is not near as bad as our dark thoughts portray it. So, how do we find peace? Well, the only place I know to find answers is in the Bible. God’s word is true, trustworthy and just as relevant today as it was the day it was written. So here it goes…
Philippians 4:6-7 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God; and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
That’s it! That’s the answer. That scripture says that we should not be anxious. (That is easier said than done, right?) But what good is worry? We should not worry, but instead we should commit our problems to God in prayer with supplication. Supplication is our request – what we are asking of God. What does the scripture say after that? It says to commit our problems to God with thanksgiving. Thanksgiving? We are to be thankful in the midst of our problem? Yes, we are! We have so much to be thankful for, don’t we? Even if every single thing in our life is falling apart, we can be thankful that God is there; that He loves us; that He will walk through hard times with us. Next, the scripture says that when we take our worry to Christ and with thanksgiving make our requests known to Him – we will find peace – true peace. Peace is calmness, confidence, and contentment. The scripture ends by telling us that when we do this God will guard our hearts and our minds. So, he will take care of our dark thoughts that make our reality seem so much worse than it really is. He will protect us from torturing our self and missing out on all the blessings that surround us every day.
WOW! I need to live this out every single day in my life. What about you?