My three-year old son Wyatt is a mama’s boy. He loves to cuddle with me and shower me with kisses and attention. He never passes by a flower that he doesn’t want to stop and pick for me. It is the sweetest thing to be the object of his affection. I cherish this season of time where Wyatt and I can spend so much time together bonding during the day while my older children are in school. However, being a mama’s boy can also have some drawbacks. Wyatt recently went through a phase where he got very anxious when I was out of his sight. He developed an irrational fear that I would leave him alone in the house when he was not paying attention. The fear of being forgotten was very real for him no matter how unreasonable it seemed to anyone else.
There were numerous occasions where I found myself busy in some part of the house when I was temporarily out of Wyatt’s view. I would be upstairs putting away laundry or trying to put down the baby for a nap and I heard Wyatt calling me. His calls began in a voice that was heavy with concern and very quickly escalated to a loud, panicked screaming. It was heartbreaking to hear such despair in his voice. I would run to him and console him, repeating the words: “Honey, I will never leave you alone in the house. I have never done that to you and I never will. If you don’t see me, just come and look for me because I am never far from you.”
That scenario played over and over in our home for a season. It occurred to me that Jesus might be trying to speak to me through the words that were coming out of my mouth. Why doesn’t Wyatt trust in me and my endless love for him? Why does he not rest in my promises? Where did this lack of faith come from? If Wyatt would only recall my words and my history with him then he would have much more peace in his life. My desire is for him to have that peace.
Doesn’t God desire that very peace for me? “For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’ So we may boldly say: ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?’” Hebrews 13:5b-6 NKJV
How clearly the Lord speaks to us and assures us that He will NEVER leave us. I remember the times when my husband and I were trying to have a baby. Every month we would anxiously anticipate the results of the pregnancy test. I would stand in the bathroom wringing my hands in agony awaiting the appearance of those thin blue lines. Every time I prayed for the Lord’s perfect timing to knit together our future child in my womb. Yet still my heart would sink when the result was negative. With a heavy heart I would declare to God that I could wait upon Him, that His timing was perfect and I would be patient. As the months went by, my patient prayers turned into demands and questions. “God, why haven’t you blessed my womb yet? Have you forgotten the desires of my heart?”
“And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.” Deuteronomy 31:8 NKJV
The reality is that Jesus is not the one who is inconsistent or forgetful of His promises. I had to constantly remind Wyatt to look for me when he felt like he was left alone. In the same way, it is I who must also actively seek after God when I feel distance. I need to sit at His feet and be reminded of His steadfast love for me. Through prayer and devoted time in the Word, the Lord brings me back to a place of remembrance. There is a much bigger picture of what is going on. While we can see only the snapshot, God sees the entire story…and it is a beautiful one.
“The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth.” Psalms 145:18 NKJV
God saw fit to eventually make me a mother not once, not twice, but four times. My beautiful children are a sweet reminder that the Lord does answer our prayers. Still, I think of the women whose wombs stay empty as prayer after prayer seems to go unanswered. Remember that Jesus never forgets you. The Creator of the universe has a specific plan for your life. Just remain steadfast in prayer, sit at His feet, and remember that your Heavenly Father has a story written for your life that is better than anything you could dream of. He wants to comfort you right now and tell you that when you feel forgotten, go look for Him. He remembers you.
By: Jessica Mitchell
Dig Deeper:
When God asks you to wait, what is your response? What would God have you do in the waiting period?
When have you felt most distant from the Lord? When have you felt closest to Him?
How can you actively seek after Jesus when you feel your prayers have been forgotten?