Kept in Love: Lullabies for the Both of UsSample

Sing You a Song

I love my son more than anything, and I adore the role of “mom,” but to be honest, I continue to be surprised by the daily challenges of parenting. I had planned to write the devotional for “Sing You a Song” during my son’s nap today, but a massive tantrum prevented said naptime in the crib. Really though, this situation could not be more timely. This song is about letting God’s care flow through us when our own care for our child has reached its limits. Well, such was the case today.

Here I am, typing the devotional on my phone while holding my sleeping son in the other. My nerves feel shot from the past 45 minutes of the tantrum, and I’m frustrated that things didn’t go as planned today.

Situations like this show up in a million different ways:

On your third trip back into the house as you try to load up the car with a baby in your arms.

When the baby refuses to nurse, you anxiously try to pump while also trying to calm your hungry, screaming child.

As you groggily start your day at 5:00 am for the 3rd week in a row of early wakeups.

Moments like these often leave us feeling exasperated. But what about the even bigger challenges?

A premature baby admitted to the NICU in critical condition for weeks.

Bitter fighting and an ever-growing rift between you and your spouse since the baby arrived.

An unexpected diagnosis for your child at a doctor’s checkup.

In both the everyday frustrations and the larger trials, how do we continue to care for our children when we don’t even feel sufficiently taken care of ourselves? When we feel stretched past the point of breaking, with nothing left to give?

The strength to care for our children comes from first letting God take care of us. We go to our Heavenly Father, and we cast our worries and our pain into his infinite arms. We let him tend to our hurting and tired hearts. And as God fills us with love and peace, we allow his care to overflow from within us to our children.

Similar to the scenario I mentioned at the beginning of this devotional, the situation that inspired “Sing you a Song” was a season of my baby refusing to nap longer than 30 minutes for months on end. I remember boiling over with frustration as I attempted to rock and sing him back to sleep over and over again until I had run out of songs and patience. I was ashamed to admit it, but in these moments, I felt overwhelmingly angry.

It was only as I learned to look to the Lord’s care in these moments that I gained the strength to continue gently loving and caring for my baby. I began to grasp the reality that as I was singing to my son, my Heavenly Father was singing over me! As Zephaniah 3:17 states,

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

“Sing you a Song” acknowledges the great devotion, commitment, and sacrifice we offer our children, but it also reminds us that the only way such love can be sustained is by drawing from God’s love for us.

When you find yourself at the end of your rope, remember your Heavenly Father’s limitless care for you. Remember that your song of love over your child streams forth from God’s song over you.

Oh, I’ll sing you a song as my Heavenly Father is singing over me

And I’ll rock you to sleep while the arms of my savior are holding me in peace

When I’m weak, God is strong

He will carry us through

His love in me - it overflows

In my love for you

Pray for your heart: Take a moment to pray to God, asking for his loving care to nourish and sustain your heart.

Pray for your child: Take a moment to pray that your unconditional love for your child would serve to point them to the even greater love of their Heavenly Father.

Rest: Finally, spend a few quiet moments at rest with God, meditating on his truth:

The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. -Zephaniah 3:17