Shielded

Today I received a message to pray for a newborn and family. The baby was delivered prematurely weighing 1.8lbs. My mind and heart immediately reflected on the times I’ve complained about my children. The ones who were born healthy with no complications and full-term. That challenging pregnancy and delivery was never my story. How we take for granted what some parents long for.

The trauma that child birth places on a woman’s body cannot be overstated. We assume our bodies will heal – some women never survive. Many babies only breathed for a moment. We get to have ours for a lifetime. Some mamas have healed bodies and disturbed minds. We made it through all intact. Maybe the next time we feel irritated enough to complain about our children, we should pause to think about the moms and babies that never made it. May we be reminded that there was a time we prayed for a safe delivery and a healthy baby – we are now living in an answered prayer.

May I be eternally grateful that I was shielded from the fear, anguish, and distress that comes with difficult pregnancies and delivery. When I’m tempted to complain about God’s grace packaged as children, remind me that my story could have been penned differently.

“So as I lift up this newborn and the parents to your throne of grace, do for them what You did for me. Give them the joy of holding their newborn free from complications. Complete the work You have started in baby’s life. May every cell begin to respond to Your touch. Let Your Spirit continue to breathe into this child. May Your power to heal and make whole be shown to all who are looking on. That many may see and know that ‘You are able to do abundantly above all that we are able to ask or think’. In Jesus name – Amen.”

‘Eternally Grateful’