I began these Advent reflections as a way to witness the birth of Christ from a unique perspective. Divinely called and uniquely gifted, Mary gives us a front row seat to the most spectacular birth on record. Indeed, she was the only person who witnessed the life of God's only Son from the cradle to the cross. And therefore, as a mother, I appreciate her point of view like no other.
Studying the birth narratives of Christ, prompted a few memories of my own. I vividly recall the day of June 2, 1994 for a variety of reasons. Pregnant with my second child and a bit overdue, I reluctantly agreed to go into the hospital to be induced. My new doctor was concerned that the baby may be losing weight and although I did not agree with his assessment, I did agree to follow his orders. Happily, this day would bring our family a new son yet another unexpected development would also give us pause.
After hours of labor with little progress I agreed to my first epidural. For the record, I hate needles! But I was grateful for the relief and soon our son was born. Before I had the opportunity to see him, though, my doctor asked me some very strange questions: "Did anything happen during your pregnancy? . . . Were you ill? . . . Did you take any medications?" Confused by his questions I simply said, "No, nothing happened during my pregnancy." Then the doctor told us that although our son seemed healthy, he was born with a cleft lip.
I'm not sure I understood what the doctor meant until I looked at our child. Wesley was born with a birth defect known as a bilateral cleft lip; that is, his top lip had not fully formed and was split in two places. As we pondered this unexpected event in his young life, I also pondered the Psalm the Lord directed me to eight months prior:
13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. 14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, 16 your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. ~Psalm 139
Verse 16 became particularly relevant to me at that moment, “your eyes saw my unformed body.” That fateful day, so many months ago, I cried out to God and he spoke to me so definitively, so clearly, yet I did not understand him until that moment. There are many things in this life that I do not understand and at the top of my list is, why are children are born with birth defects? I say this as a mom and not as a theologian. I understand that we live in a cursed world. Over the years I have pondered the word of God to me and I have treasured the insights he has given me through my son's ordeal. Although I still may have a lot of questions without answers, I also have a heightened appreciation for who God is and his all-encompassing concern for my son. Therefore, of this one thing I am absolutely sure, every child is lovingly created by the sovereign hand of God . . . in his image . . . for his purpose.
My prayer for you this advent day is that as you consider your child or any child for that matter, I pray you may appreciate the wonder of God, his divine image, and his sovereign potential in their precious lives.
Next time: Scars
No comments:
Post a Comment