Audience of One

So this morning I was completely caught of guard not realising it was Josie's nursery performance today. A few songs to all the mummies and daddies to mark the end of the year and of course the big move to P1.

I have to say a big hand to the teachers who try to co-ordinate 4 year olds to do anything in sync. Giggles and lots of waving had us lost in the moment as our little ones did their very best to perform.
As all the kids where completely distracted every 20 seconds - there was one little boy whose whole posture looked different to the rest of the class. He was standing offset - not facing the front but angled in my direction and he wasn't breaking eye contact with his
Daddy who I was sitting beside.
Here was a kid - it didn't matter what everyone else was doing, he wasn't singing to the room, he was singing to one person and one person only.
It was a beautiful thing to watch and then the killer - he pointed to his eye, then his heart and then his dad and I was gone trying to hold back a few tears.

As I watched this little boy I remembered a song from my teenage years about serving an audience of one. I realise that so many times we can get so distracted in the play, our part alongside the rest of the cast, the people who are watching, getting it right and yet miss the point that it's simply entertaining for the director to watch us enjoy what he has so cleverly written and created for us to enjoy.

I'm reminded today that this is all about Him. I'm blown away that his gaze is on me the whole time because he simply loves me.

Be blessed!

Held by Him

I had the great privilege of speaking in church just before christmas on trust. Such a simple word that we all know and yet it's the foundation of our relationship with God. Trusting in His perfect love is where it all begins.

Children are the best examples when it comes to demonstrating trust. Jesus himself said that we need to become childlike to see Kingdom and all that it brings. It's being like a child and simply believing Him and taking Him at his word. Particularly young children don't tend to ask how things are going to happen - they just go with it. They take us as their parents at our word.

I had an incredible sense this week of being held by God. It got me thinking about what that actually means. A lot of lovely newborns have been added to our church family recently and of course everyone wants to hold them. No-one is going to drop them (well in theory) they're secure, at rest and aren't even wondering "I hope they're holding on tight." That thought doesn't even enter their little heads - they relax and enjoy the fact that someone has got them.

However something instinctively changes as we get a bit older. Even my girls who are not 4 & 6, when I'm holding them, you can be sure that they've got a fist on my clothes and are in turn holding for grim death onto me. I'm not going to drop them, but yet they instinctively hold on to me too.

I honestly felt challenged this week by God to let go of my grip on Him, He's not going anywhere. He has got me. Why is this a big challenge??

It's takes trust to let go and believe that he's holding onto to me and I can relax.

There is an incredible rest and freedom that comes from knowing that we are held and have the attention and affection of our creator. There's nothing we can do, but like a newborn, snuggle in, relax and know that we are indeed Held by Him.