He Doesn't Even Know

At church on Sunday, my one-year old bent down to pick up a toy. His head was right below the hymnbook holder on the back of the bench in front of us. My husband quickly reached out and put his hand between the wooden holder and our son's head. Our son stood up and went right along with his playing without a second thought. Ryan looked at me and whispered, "He doesn't even know."

It really made me think. How often do we "not even know"? How often do we fail to notice the hand that's protecting us? How many times in a day or a week or a month am I helped, rescued, saved, guarded, or watched over - and I don't even know? When was the last time I sat down and really pondered on the near-constant stream of blessings that is mine every single day? How many times has my life been saved, saved from pain, sorrow, or even death, because I am worth it, and I am loved, and I am cared for?

I have been pondering on this all week long, and it occurs to me that being a child of Heavenly Father is so much more than I have ever considered before. As I make my journey through parenthood, learning and growing and observing along the way, I am constantly struck with the sheer number of times I save my children - from all sorts of dangerous, precarious - and sometimes hilarious - misfortunes. I am never too tired to jump up and catch him as he slides trustingly off the edge of the table. I am never too busy to pull him away from the "poky bushes." I am never too frustrated to give a hug in a moment of overwhelmed sorrow. I'm not a perfect parent, and I can't catch everything. Plus, sometimes I have to also recognize that saving them means allowing them to experience a minor struggle in order to learn. But I am constantly watching them, waiting ready to save them again.

On this Easter weekend, I simply want to add my witness to so many others that God is our loving, eternal, Heavenly Father. He knows us. He loves us. He is our parent, and we are His children. That love that I feel for my boys every single day is but a tiny glimpse of the love He feels for me, and for you, and for all of us. I am so grateful to Him for providing a Savior for me, who suffered and died so that I could live my life, learning and growing and many times not even knowing all the ways that He has saved me. He lives, and because He lives, I can live, too.