Where Mom Is
Yesterday I took time to walk in the park between home and work. A nice one mile loop through a wooded area, past a dog park, and in between a series of baseball fields. A great place for quiet thinking. As I walked through the long stretch of gently windy woods, I saw a boy all alone. He was probably between 2 and 3 years old and he was completely absorbed in spinning in little circles and alternately the sky and the path. Until he saw me.
Now I’m a pretty intimidating dude. At least my wife says I look strong, and I trust her judgment. So it was only natural that my appearance on the trail would through this young man out of his oblivious revelry. I smiled reassuringly, but he began to look around in moderate panic. I was looking around too. It was a little concerning to see this poor kid on his own. But it was only a moment before both the little boy and I saw his mom with the stroller and a little sibling just at the next bend.
The direction of the stroller showed they had been walking away from where the boy had clearly stopped. Mom wasn’t shirking her supervision, but she did allow space for this young one to feel it. And when he saw a stranger…he felt it. Mom also noticed the danger of a stranger and began to walk back. The parent and child moved toward each other and once he was in his mom’s range, he returned my smile and waved happily at me.
From that place of refuge, it was safe to engage the strange man.
God is our refuge and strength, a helper who is always found in times of trouble. Therefore we will not be afraid, though the earth trembles and the mountains topple into the depths of the seas, though its water roars and foams and the mountains quake with its turmoil.
Psalm 46:1-3 CSB
When my heart is afraid, when worries threaten to overwhelm me, what I most often find, is that somewhere along the path, I quit walking close to the Father. He never goes far, but it seems that God is willing to allow us to create space if that is our choice. But just like the mother, the moment we recognize our need and turn, He is there. Once more our refuge and strength. A place from which we can smile and wave at the bald men with sunglasses.
Today, I want to do better at staying in that refuge. The place that gave the prophets and martyrs the courage to lay their lives down. The place that gives the courage to follow Jesus in picking up my cross. The place that allowed Paul to say, “I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Gal 2:20) Which in turn gave him the confidence to say, “To live is Christ and to die is gain” (Phil 1:21). To be so confident of the father’s refuge that even death no longer is a threat, but one more place I can depend on my refuge and strength.