“Did he do that for me?” asked five-year-old little Dawson, raising his eyebrows.
I am a stepmom, or a bonus mom as we affectionately prefer to say. Dawson is not my son or stepson. Rather, he is the brother of my bonus daughters and has a set of eyebrows that speak volumes. Our family is blessed to have a beautiful co-parenting relationship, and both my husband’s ex-wife and I interact with all the children from our various families.
On this particular day, Dawson and I went for ice cream and to wait for his mom so we could switch out children. “The Commission” by Cain was playing on the radio when the Spirit moved the biggest blue eyes on a weekday afternoon in the middle of mundane blended-parent life.
I explained to Dawson that, yes, Christ did do that for him. The wonder on his face broke my heart and filled it simultaneously. He asked a few more questions, and I asked if he knew Jesus. He assured me he did.
By the time his mom came, I had tears in my eyes. The magnitude of Jesus’ sacrifice hit me. As Dawson and I conversed, I saw Jesus hanging on the cross. I viewed the nails ripping into His skin and the sinful weight of the world weighing on His shoulders. I felt His forgiveness and love wash over me as I sat in the grocery store parking lot, exhausted from a typical day. I thought about how Jesus leaves the ninety-nine to find the one. His love, a love that pursues, is bigger than our comprehension—yet simple enough for little ones to understand.
With the chaos of adulthood, we often miss the mark. Jesus said we should have a childlike faith. How different would life be if we only rested in a faith like Dawson’s? What if we did not question every obstacle or try to fix every problem ourselves? If only we would rest in God’s love for us. If only we could sit with Jesus for a while and go to Him as a little child. After all, he is our Father.
Find ways to sit with your heavenly Father daily and reflect on His love for you.
Gretchen Martin is a teacher, blog author, and mom living in a small town in North Carolina with her husband and four daughters.