Highlights of Life

What a prophetic song that Steven Curtis Chapman wrote about in his CD that includes “CInderella” and “Miracle of the Moment”….

As I sit and listen to some of SCC’s songs and read about his personal tragedy with his youngest daughter, my heart is moved and grieves over what happened to his family.

And as I hear the song Miracle of the Moment, I can’t help but be touched by the absolute truth of the song. How worrying about the future won’t add another day, and anxiety and worry and fears will do squat for our situation. And in the midst of my utter exhaustion and fatigue over caring for our newborn, I am absolutely touched by God’s grace through the lyrics of this song.

Cause truth be told, exhaustion and fatigue can take away from any wonder in any moment. And as I sat here feeding and burping my child this morning, and counting the minutes before she fell asleep (and she is a darn good sleeper and a non-fussy child), and as my mind ran through the lists of things I needed to do before her next wake cycle and feeding, I suddenly realized how I had let the business of the future crowd the enjoyment of the moment. It then hit me as I sat there holding and cradling my sleeping daughter in my arms, how absolutely wonderful the moment was, and what a blessing God had given us.

I then breathed a deep breath in, and simply enjoyed the blessing that moment brought… to be holding my sleeping daughter quietly in my arms. Simultaneously, I realized how she would not always forever be this size, where I could totally hold her entirely in my arms, and that one of these days, our daughter would grow up. And that although I may mind her 3 hourly feedings, and changing her diapers, and being woken up at 1am or 4am in the mornings to stumble around to meet her needs in my sleep, in light of her actual presence and contribution to our family life, I absolutely loved her and those tasks didn’t seem so terrible after all.

Anyways, “Miracle of the Moment” is a wonderful song that reminds us of God’s absolute grace and mercy. Of how in each moment, when we can only see the negative aspects of fatigue and exhaustion, there is a wonderful silver and gold lining the moment that shouldn’t be missed. That if we go around becoming anxious and worried over the little things, we forget and overlook the many blessings God has included in that particular moment.

Great song…

It’s time for letting go
All of our “if onlies”
Cause we don’t have a time machine

And even if we did
Would we really want to use it
Would we really want to go change everything

Cause we are who and where and what we are for now
And this is the only moment we can do anything about

So breathe it in and breathe it out
And listen to your heartbeat
There’s a wonder in the here and now
It’s right there in front of you
And I don’t want you to miss the miracle of the moment

There’s only One who knows
What’s really out there waiting
And all the moments yet to be
And all we need to know
Is He’s out there waiting
To Him the future’s history

And He has given us a treasure called right now
And this is the only moment we can do anything about

So breathe it in and breathe it out
And listen to your heartbeat
There’s a wonder in the here and now
It’s right there in front of you
And I don’t want you to miss the miracle of the moment

And if it brings you tears
Then taste them as they fall
Let them soften your heart

And if it brings you laughter
Then throw your head back
And let it go
Let it go, yeah
You gotta let it go

And listen to your heartbeat

And breathe it in and breathe it out
And listen to your heartbeat
There’s a wonder in the here and now
It’s right there in front of you
And I don’t want you to miss the miracle of the moment

And breathe it in and breathe it out
And listen to your heartbeat
There’s a wonder in the here and now
It’s right there in front of you
And I don’t want you to miss the miracle of the moment

Last month, we gave birth to a beautiful little girl. Part Asian and part East Indian, and 100% American, she is absolutely beautiful. Now about 1 month later after giving birth to her, I sit here and wonder at the absolutely incredible miracle that God has given us. I understand she is not mine, and not ours… not like a piece of furniture which one owns, but rather, she is absolutely His (ie. God’s), and precious in His sight. Likewise, we are entrusted as her parents to take care of her and bring her up to fulfill her destiny.

But during these absolutely quiet moments in the night, there is an awe that still fills my heart. Initially it was an awe that this human life came from inside my womb, and was created by God. The thought just filled me with wonder. And during the initial few weeks, there was this incredible awe at how fragile and small she was. She was literally limp as a newborn, with little muscle strength… and that fact along with that God would entrust her wellbeing to us was awe inspiring.

Now tonight, as I look at her peaceful and quiet sleeping face, I can not but wonder at how great God is. How faithful, and great He is. To create life…. and to know she is fearfully and wonderfully made in His image. wow.

And as a new parent, to know that Steven Curtis Chapman recently lost his daughter this year, is heart breaking. To hear his song, “Cinderalla” is heart wrenching, as I come to the realization that our life on earth is temporary, and and fleeting and that every moment with our children should be cherished and loved.

Already as she grows, day-by-day, I can not believe how incredible the human body is… and how fast children grow up. And likewise, I remember that our children is not our little demi-gods, to be worshiped as so many parents are prone to do these days in today’s society. Living rooms overfilled with toys beyond what 100 children could possibly play with (let alone 1 single child), and obsessing over the best school district, today’s parents have become so hung up over children, that I’m thinking it’s probably not the model of family life that God intended.

So it is our goal to bring up our little newborn to be godly woman of God, who knows God as her personal Saviour, and to teach her what God would want us to teach. To equip her and provide love and shelter and with all that she needs to be a wise young woman of God who loves God with all her heart, soul and mind. This is our goal. And some days, as a new parent, simply getting through the day, and through our extreme fatigue and exhaustion seems like a daunting task… but I guess with God’s help, all things are possible (and that is all we need).

So praise God, for His goodness, and His extreme wisdom in knowing what is good for us, and His provision and most of all, His grace… and His mercy. May we be the parents that God intends and wants us to be. Amen.