Babies are a blessing!

"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate."

ESV, Psalm 127:3


"For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition that I made to him. Therefore I have lent him to the Lord. As long as he lives, he is lent to the Lord.”

ESV, 1 Samuel 1:27-28

I just love these two verses.  The first talks about what a blessing that children are to us.  The second is the thankful promise of a mother who wondered if she would ever have her own little child, after the Lord granted her request.

Before I had my own precious little baby, I didn't grasp the blessing and innocence of them.  I hadn't been around them just a whole lot in my life.  Yes I knew they were God's blessings to us, and that they were innocent beings that were are commanded to protect, but none of that became so understood to me until I had my own.  For the first few years of marriage, I saw babies as precious and innocent, yes.  I also saw them as stinky little diaper poopers that screamed a LOT and were incredibly needy.  Now I am not going to deny that they are pretty good at the latter statement.  Haha!!  But it is so wonderfully worth it.  There is a lot of things that you don't really get in life until you change an "explosive" diaper, use a snot sucker, wake up at  1 a.m. and 2 a.m. and 3 a.m. and 4 a.m., and mop up cottage cheesey spit up.  

Me and my sister.  We were very blessed children!

It's that babies are a blessing, and that you were one once.  There was a time when someone wiped your rear end, who cared enough to wake up at all hours of the morning when necessary to feed you and console you.  And don't all babies deserve to be so loved?  Doesn't everyone deserve to have their little cheeks kissed as a baby, to be rocked to a lullaby, to be taught right from wrong?  Unfortunately, not everyone gets the blessing of being born into a loving situation.  Just let that sink in if you were loved as a child.

That was a privilege.  Be thankful for it. 

As followers of Christ, I believe we are commanded to love and protect children - ALL children, not just our own. But how can we help?  What can we do?  This is something that I hope to explore and study more about as time goes on.  Sometimes I get afraid of what I might find, that it will take a lot of work or a lot of emotional toll on me or my family.  But Christ died for me.  Surely I can do something for Him.