I remember when hugging my niece meant bending down and picking her up to bring her to my level. After some time, it meant waist high hugs where her little arms barely wrapped around my entire body. Today, hugging her means resting my nose on the top of her head, as she is only a couple of inches shorter than me. Whew! My baby isn’t a baby anymore.
From the moment my sister announced her pregnancy, I knew that her baby would be my new best friend. That was partially because I just knew that this baby would love me as much as I was beginning to love it… and partially because, well, I’m Auntie. I’m a whole vibe. Lol! And on May 11, 2011 when Sophia was born, though I was hundreds of miles away on a cruise, I knew my littlest bestie had just been born. I fell in love with this little girl when I finally met her! As the newest baby in the family, it was my duty as auntie to spoil, love, and protect her fiercely- always ensuring that she knew that she was important and loved.
Every time I went grocery shopping with my sister, I monitored Sophia while my sister shopped. Sophia would sit in the cart and I would play with her, keeping her engaged as her mother went around the store. There was this one time when another shopper came just a little too close to our cart and my eyes got BIG, furious with this person’s audacity to come that close to my baby. (I should add that the shopper was just trying to reach a product that was nearer to us in our fixed position. LOL! But I was protective!) At that age, we were so protective of Sophia that we never even told people her real name, choosing only to identify her by her nickname (Butterfly), as if that somehow gave her a little more coverage from the world. Today, I sit in awe of how much she has grown in these almost 11 years and I am slowly realizing one humbling fact- I am not her protector.
Something to know about me, I go HARD for those that I love. Mess with my loved one and all the Baltimore/Jamaica comes out in me. For that time, the knowing-better Christian within me gets set aside, “proper” language goes out the window, and all that remains is the hood chick with an attitude, ready to defend and protect what’s hers. Small disclaimer, I’m not as “hood” as I like to think that I am. My mama did not raise me that way but sometimes I like to think that I am ‘bout that life. Whew, but I’m not!
Ok, Beloved, here’s my point….
This past Saturday, a potentially harmful situation happened involving my niece, causing me to sit in guilt, shame, and disappointment for far too long. I kept replaying the situation, calling out the many moments when I had failed to protect her, heartbroken by what could have happened… failing to acknowledge the fact that it did not happen. You see, up until that point, I thought that I was supposed to protect my family from things and even when I travelled, I prayed asking God to “protect them in my absence.” On Saturday, God reminded me that it was never me protecting them, but instead, it was always Him.
The power of THREE…
God is described as being Omniscient, Omnipresent, and Omnipotent. Back before I even learned about Jehovah anything, I learned those three qualities of God. He is all-knowing, ever-present (everywhere at the same time), and all-powerful. There is no one like our God. Yet, somehow, I had forgotten all of that in recent years. The same God who was God before me, will be God forever and always; He does not need my help.
Today is Monday yet pieces of my heart still sit in Saturday’s events. Maybe had I just spoken up, things would have been different. Maybe. Or maybe if I had not taken her with me that day, this potential issue and conversation piece wouldn’t have occurred. Maybe. Or, maybe still, I needed to be reminded that it is not me or my actions that protects my loved ones from danger; it is only God.
I pray that our Omnipresent, Omniscient, and Omnipotent God is forever the head of your life. I pray that His Holy Spirit is covering you, protecting you for all hurt, harm, and danger, seen and unseen. I pray that we all learn the power of prayer, know the strength that our words have, and recognize the sweetness of our words in God’s ears. I pray that as we become aware of our limitations, we simultaneously become aware of God’s limitlessness and fully trust Him with every aspect of our lives.
In Jesus’ name, I pray.
Amen.
Be blessed, Beloved.
God Happened To ME Ministries, LLC 