Separation

When I had my first baby,  Mom came and stayed with me till he was a week old.  We lived in southern Indiana and they lived in southern Missouri at the time so it was about a four hour drive.  Mom told me later that when she went home, she cried most of the way.  I know now how she felt!

Thankfully, I only live about an hour and twenty minutes from my daughter and her husband but it's still a separation.  I saw him on the day he was born.  I returned when he was four days old and stayed until today, his one week birthday.  As I drove home I thought of how much he had changed in that one short week.  I don't want to go more than a couple of weeks without seeing him!

When I became a mom, all of a sudden my Mom was the smartest women on earth.  I called her as often as my long distance bill could take it.  I made the trip to Missouri much more often.  Seeing how much Mom and Dad loved being with my kids brought me so much joy.  The kids would often stay a week or two with Granny and Granddad.  When they came home, they were full of stories of all the fun they had.  Such adventures!

My Mom's sister and best friend got in on the action, too.  Aunt Sis (as I know her) and her husband, my Uncle Virgil, loved to take the kids for a week in the early Spring to go crappie fishing.  They had so much fun with them.  I am so fortunate to have such a loving, supportive family!

The Bible tells us that if we as human parents love our children and know how to give good gifts to them, how much more will God do for His own children?  Jesus talked about this in Matthew when He was teaching about prayer.

Matthew 7:10-11 (The Message)
"Don't bargain with God. Be direct. Ask for what you need. This isn't a cat-and-mouse, hide-and-seek game we're in. If your child asks for bread, do you trick him with sawdust? If he asks for fish, do you scare him with a live snake on his plate? As bad as you are, you wouldn't think of such a thing. You're at least decent to your own children. So don't you think the God who conceived you in love will be even better?

Thankfully I don't have to pay any long distance charges to talk to God.  Yet far too many times I wait until I have a problem to talk to Him.  I miss out on so much when I do that!  God doesn't like being separated from you and me.  He wants to talk to us, to have a deep, intimate relationship with us.

Galatians 4:4-7 (The Message)
But when the time arrived that was set by God the Father, God sent his Son, born among us of a woman, born under the conditions of the law so that he might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the law. Thus we have been set free to experience our rightful heritage. You can tell for sure that you are now fully adopted as his own children because God sent the Spirit of his Son into our lives crying out, "Papa! Father!" Doesn't that privilege of intimate conversation with God make it plain that you are not a slave, but a child? And if you are a child, you're also an heir, with complete access to the inheritance.

Oh, Papa, I know how much you miss me and long to be with me!  I'm so grateful that I won't be separated from you!  I will set aside more time to be with You!