Control - a dad and the Father

I got a phone call earlier tonight that I've dreaded for some time. It went like this...

Jina: "There's no reason to worry, but I'm at Kosair (Children's Hospital) with Jaden and...(dead air)...

Ok so I know, since she wasn't hysterical, that things must be somewhat ok, and since last I heard she was at Norton's waiting on a family members first to be born, it made sense that any injury to one of the little guys would result in a walk across the pedway to Kosair.

With that being said and without going into too many story details, let's just say as a dad, your job is to fix everything, protect everyone, etc., etc. Kind of hard to do when you're sitting at a restaurant in New Orleans. My biggest fear was realized, one of my sons needed me, my wife needed me, and I wasn't there and couldn't get there.

...so an hour later she's finally in a room with a phone and is able to give me a call and an update. Looks like his head is tough like his mom's, but since he came in with a head injury, they'll run the obligatory CAT Scan to be sure.

Anyway, as I sat pondering my salad, sat pondering what my options might be to get back home as soon as possible should that be necessary, I was reminded of the fact I discovered 3 years ago sitting in a hotel in Toledo, OH, watching the Louisville weather on the internet as severe storms rolled through our area. I'm not in control. I can't stop every bad thing or fix everything. All I can do is trust. Trust in God, and pray.

Now for someone who writes a blog that occasionally spouts a theological notion or espouses a faith based recommendation, I'm ill qualified to do either. I manage to read my Bible daily, in spurts, and then go for long dry spells with it collecting dust. The verses I post here are usually the result of searching Biblegateway.com, not ones that I can pull straight from memory. In my defense, I usually know what I'm looking for, just not where to go for it. I can easily relate to the line from Alan Jackson's "Where Were You When the World Stopped Turning" when he sings, "...but I know Jesus and I talk to God and I remember this from when I was young...", I'm no scholar, but I do remember the lessons I've learned from Christian parents, from Christian friends, and from teachers and preachers along the way.

So on nights like tonight I'm thankful for a God that is merciful and just, who has within his power the ability to stop or not stop the bad things that happen. I know that the heartache in this world is a result of our sin, and we all, believer and non-believer must suffer at times. On a night like tonight, I sit here writing this, waiting for another phone call, praying my son is ok, and knowing that the one to whom I pray has control over all things, and hears my prayers.

When a dad can't be there, the Father can.


Luke 8:24-25
24The disciples went and woke him, saying, "Master, Master, we're going to drown!"
He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. 25"Where is your faith?" he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, "Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him."-emphasis added