I have had the privilege of staying with my kids and spending time with my grandchildren, Ela and Felix. This morning, little Felix was crying while her daddy changed her diaper. She is just on the edge of four months old. As I watched, a tiny tear slipped from her closed eye and rolled down her cheek. Everything in me wanted to wipe away that little tear. I could not bear to let it fall unnoticed.
In that moment, Psalm 56 came alive to me in a new way: Everything in me wanted to wipe away that little tear. I couldn’t allow it to drop alone. It was precious to me, her little tears mattered. In that moment, Psalm 56 came alive to me in a new way.
You have seen me tossing and turning through the night. You have collected all my tears and preserved them in your bottle! You have recorded every one in your book. Psalm 56:8 TLB
A View from the Mountain
Today, I have a view from the mountain that little Felix does not. I can see a bigger picture than she can. I knew her discomfort was only temporary. Once she was changed, fed, and settled into a nap, everything would be all right. I was not distressed, because I knew the end of the matter. But my little Felix did not know that. She only knew the discomfort of the moment, until at last she found rest and reassurance in her father’s arms.
God could have continued creating each of us from dust. But instead, He ordained pregnancy, infancy, childhood, and all the tender stages of growth. What if this was part of His elegant design to show us something about His own heart? What if these everyday moments are small reflections of His thoughts toward us, His compassion, His peace, and His grace?
How often do we miss the sacred in the ordinary?
He sees our tossing and turning. He sees our worries and fears. And even though He knows that, in the end, all will be well, He still treasures every tear. He does not dismiss our pain simply because He sees the full picture. Our tears matter to Him, because we matter to Him.
If a grandma cannot ignore the tear of a beloved child, how much more does our heavenly Father treasure every tear that falls from ours?
