Reflecting on a Quiet House

It is late enough for the house to be quiet now; the children have gone to bed, the lights have been mostly turned out and I find myself reflecting on a time when it was like this all the time. There was a day when I could tell Jen about my day without dodging tiny flying dinosaurs or changing diapers, or hearing Maela scream because Noah is desperately trying to pop the balloon that has become her most recent treasure. There was a day. The truth is that the sights and sounds and yes even the smells of parenting have become precious to me. The older my children grow the more fervently I pray to God for the presence of mind to cherish every moment I have with them. So when the weekend comes and the noise of childhood reaches my ears first thing in the morning I consider myself blessed.

I find myself also reflecting on the sounds I never hear but am desperately longing for, the sounds of my baby girl crying, the din of my little boy getting the best of me with his practical jokes. I am waiting, waiting for these sounds with all my heart. Uganda hears these sounds, other people hear these sounds but I do not…and my heart is aching for them. What I am confronted with tonight, however, is the truth that when I do not hear the sounds of my children my Father in heaven, their true Father is listening. We found out Tuesday morning that our little girl who was born premature had been taken to the pediatrician for Pneumonia. For a little one with underdeveloped lungs this is a very dangerous and life threatening condition. We immediately called the Woman who has been lovingly caring for her (and 43 other children under three) for the past few months to find out exactly what was going on…it was true she had pneumonia. It was also true that God had already made provision for her. We have some friends in Uganda who know a missionary who has been praying for and loving and visiting our little girl since she was born and she had offered to foster her for us until we can come get her. That same day this beautiful servant of God picked her up at the orphanage and took her straight to a hospital where she is receiving the care she needs. They are expecting to release her tomorrow. Praise God who is the helper of the orphan, the God who hears, the loving father. Praise the God of heaven that when I could not hear the cries of my daughter the Infinite Father listened and appointed for her one of his servants.

So until the day when my boys can gang up on me and my girls can learn to manipulate me I am here, listening for sounds I cannot hear and enjoying the ones I can. I praise God for being the helper of the orphan…for preserving the life of a tiny child in Uganda.