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Just ListenPublished: Sun, 02 Apr 2006 09:00:00 -0400 Before you start reading this, I want you to keep in mind that this is not a normal devotional, with a Bible story, a bunch of verses and how to apply it to your life. It’s the story of a girl, whom I personally know...that taught so much in the short time I was with her. I can only hope that this will touch you all, in the way it touched me.
“Now I lay me down to sleep I pray the LORD my soul to keep If I should die before I wake I pray the LORD my soul to take Amen.” Those are the words of a young girl of 5, her name is Amelia. Amelia is blind and also has a mental disorder which causes her to not be able to speak very well. Through my 90 minutes of being with this young child, I learned so much about faith, comfort and love from our Heavenly father.
Amelia and her family attended my church in Mobile, Alabama. I was asked to work in the nursery on this one particular Sunday, and my focus for some reason was immediately drawn to Amelia. At 5 years old, this girl had the mental capacity of a 2 year old. Her words were barely understandable, and she was blind.
I observed Amelia for a while and then decided to go talk to her. We held a broken conversation about horses and stuffed animals. After then, she immediately knew my voice, held my hand, and tried to talk to me for the rest of the morning. Another child in the class handed Amelia a stuffed bear, which said that prayer we all recited at our bedsides as children: “Now I lay me down to sleep…” I listened to Amelia, as she tried to say these words with the bear; at first she listened, then she tried as hard as she could to say it with the bear. I could see the frustration in her face every time she said it wrong. She played it repeatedly, holding it to her ear and covering the other so that she could only hear the prayer. After a few times, Amelia could say the prayer perfectly in unison with this bear. She repeated the prayer over and over again, until her mother came to pick her up.
I knew God was trying to teach me something that day. Though, I could not quite put my finger on it. But now that I have, I am compelled to share it with you all.
So many times, we rely on our own strength to get us through. God wants to help us, to guide us through…but we have to let him. I was once given an illustration on this issue. The Airplane Glider, that toy that is hooked to a rubber band, and when you pull the rubber band, the airplane goes flying. The momentum of the rubber band keeps it flying, but it slowly starts to slow down and then crashes. The momentum from the rubber band all comes from our own strength. The airplane relies on nothing else, and soon crashes. This is also true with our own lives, we rely on ourselves to keep us going, especially though the hard times. Not only does God want to help you through all your struggles and trials, he wants to carry you through them, be your momentum, and be your strength.
For sake of example, say that Amelia is each one of us, and that little bear was God. When Amelia first started listening to the bear, she couldn’t comprehend very well, but her eagerness to understand the words and her eagerness to say the words kept her going. Soon, she could say a few words; the words were not clear at all, but one could tell she comprehended. Then after some more listening and understanding. Amelia could say every line of that prayer perfectly, in unbroken words, too. Sometimes, we just need to sit, listen to God, submit our hectic lives to him, and let him sooth us with his words. At first, we may not understand what he is saying or doing. But with time, and sincere submission, we will soon see his plans for us, things will become clearer and easier and soon we will understand and wonder why it was so hard in the beginning.
In order for us all to minimize the stress in our chaotic lives, we have to let God be our momentum, let God be our strength, but in order to do that, we first have to listen…
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