Bridget A. Thomas
Every day is a gift!
Trusting God With Your Heart
When my husband and I went blueberry picking a couple of weeks ago, it made me think of a particular scene in The Sound of Music. The children snuck out of the house in an attempt to visit Fräulein Maria. When they got back home, their father, Captain Von Trapp, grilled them on where they had been. The children said they had been out picking blueberries. Well their father replied that it was too early for blueberries. One of the boys then said that it was really strawberries, but it had been so cold lately that the strawberries turned blue. Everyone cringed at that silly statement. Well this caused the Captain to ask to see all the berries. But the children said that they ate them. Calling their bluff, the father then tells them that since they ate thousands of berries, they must not be hungry for dinner.
This scene makes me think of God the Father and how we sometimes try to keep things from Him. Of course we know that God is omniscient. He sees everything and He knows everything. But do we still try to hide things from Him? At times we might try to keep our true feelings and emotions hidden. Or perhaps we might tuck away some of our dreams and desires. Or maybe we try to bury our past or our scars. Maybe we think if we bring some of these things to God, it could stir up too much pain. Or it could be that we feel if we are too open with the Lord, He might strike us down.
Some of these reactions stem from our relationships with humans. When we put our hearts on the line with people, we often get hurt. If we share our dreams with our loved ones, they might shoot us down and tell us all the reasons why it won’t work. People are quick to judge others and point fingers. It can be hard for humans to extend grace and mercy.
But our Heavenly Father isn’t like that. God is love. And He loves His children. He cares about His children’s feelings. His children’s hopes and dreams matter to Him. Just like the Captain in The Sound of Music. Of course he knew all along the children weren’t berry picking, just as our Father knows how we are feeling even when we don’t come out and tell Him. And the Captain wasn’t going to punish the children for sharing the truth with him, just as our Father won’t harm us for being honest with Him.
I will leave you with Psalm 121, which is a beautiful picture of how The Lord watches over us. And the first two verses are actually mentioned towards the end of The Sound of Music. (By the way, if you have never watched The Sound of Music, please do. The 1965 version with Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer.)
Psalm 121 New Living Translation (NLT)
Psalm 121
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
I look up to the mountains—
does my help come from there?
My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth!
He will not let you stumble;
the one who watches over you will not slumber.
Indeed, he who watches over Israel
never slumbers or sleeps.
The Lord himself watches over you!
The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
The sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon at night.
The Lord keeps you from all harm
and watches over your life.
The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go,
both now and forever.
Bridget A. Thomas 