Holding on to Dad
by Dotty Cockcroft
A short while ago we were blessed to be able to have a holiday with our son and his family. One day we were in a lovely bay with a sandy beach surrounded by rocks. Perfect for snorkelling and we were trying to teach our nine-year old grandson how to snorkel. He is already a good swimmer, but he couldn’t quite do it. Then his dad came to join us and the boy said to him, ‘If I can hold on to you, dad, I think I’ll be ok’, and that is what happened. Off they went together all around the bay watching the fish swimming among the rocks. It was a delight to see.
It made me think of our verse today where God himself promises to be with us and not leave us, and encourages us not to be afraid or discouraged. What an amazing promise that is. Jesus told us that we need to come into the Kingdom like little children (Luke 18:17). Just like my grandson who knew he could trust his dad to look after him, we need to trust that promise of God.
Sometimes it does seem as if God is far away, and there can only be two reasons for that. The first is that it isn’t true and we just need to trust him in the midst of whatever difficulty we are in, when things don’t seem to be going well. The second is that we have moved away from him. If we do something that we know God has asked us not to do, or not done something we know we should, then we distance ourselves from His protection.
Thank God that when we repent (stop doing it and say sorry) we are back under His protection, although I think it would be difficult to remove ourselves completely from His loving care.
Most of us know that we do things wrong, but we don’t have to be worrying all the time that we’re putting ourselves outside His protection. He really wants to be with us, and be there for us (like my son and grandson), so we just need to be open to the Holy Spirit to show us if we are doing something wrong, and then put it right. The rest of the time we can just rest in the promise of God because He said, “I have loved you with an everlasting love;" (Jeremiah 31:3).
So, let me encourage you today to: metaphorically speaking, put on the snorkel mask and get out there to watch the fishes; or whatever God is leading you to do.
Prayer: Father God, thank You for Your many promises in Scripture that You love us with an everlasting love and will not leave us or forsake us. Help us to trust in that today and every day. Amen.
Dotty Cockcroft is on the associate ministry and teaching teams at Glyndley Manor where she has been involved for about 20 years. She is married with 3 grown up children and 3 gorgeous grandchildren and works as a Practice Nurse. She passionately believes God wants us to move into His healing and wholeness.
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