“I don’t think his son realized where daddy had gone at first, but when he did, playtime seemed much less important to him than getting daddy’s attention, and he began to call. He was relentless as a beagle on the trail of a rabbit after that.”
Come Down
January 3, 2004
He was happy riding his tricycle, and not that much interested in what daddy was doing. The construction crew I worked for was building a house for his father, on a quiet culde-sac outside of town, and it wasn’t unusual for him to visit the construction site with his dad. His father’s visits were, I
suppose, progress checks, but he also seemed to enjoy the visits, and the chats he had with everyone. His demeanor was always pleasant, never anxious, and laughter was frequent during his short stays. That day, we were working above the ceiling on the rafters of his soon-to-be home, so he climbed up
to where we were. I don’t think his son realized where daddy had gone at first, but when he did, playtime seemed much less important to him than getting daddy’s attention, and he began to call. He was relentless as a beagle on the trail of a rabbit after that. His tune never changed, his howl was the same and insistent, “Come down here.” Implied in that simple statement, was both need and desire. His father hesitated… and tried to question his insistence on him coming down now, why now? But no answer was forthcoming; only the same dogged plea, “Daddy, come down here.” Dad soon relented and climbed down, and as he approached his boy, to find out what all the fuss was about; one simple request is all the child had, “Hold me,” he implored. All that single-mindedness, all his perseverance, was directed toward intimacy with his father. His reward… his dad did just that. Like a child, our power to ascend to where God walks, is beyond our capability, beyond our grasp, so it has to be up to Him doesn’t it? He must be the one to come down! Only He could bring the intimacy we crave. We yearn for Him, because in His presence we feel assured, safe and most of all loved. Nothing we know of is as constant as His care. He has to be our source, because our hands are too small, our reach too short to fulfill our desires, or meet our needs. Security is always tenuous at best. A crisis seems to be always looming ominously, like storms on our horizon, and when inevitably the gale begins, we desperately want to anchor to something… to someone that will make us feel everything will be all right. Without that contact we feel abandoned and alone. Alone is the feeling of God being unreachable, because it feels like if He can’t be touched, He doesn’t care. Gladly, I can say, He anticipated our need to be reassured, and so He came down. Matthew 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring
forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
1 John 1:1
That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
Our heavenly Fathers business is so often beyond our comprehension, thankfully His love is not; but can be seen if we care to look, and experienced, if we dare to ask. His love can be the bedrock of our life when we realize, we have no reason to doubt it. If we measure love by sacrifice, or by what is given of one’s self, what more could He give? He sent His son on a mission of pain to save us; and it should be clear that because He loves us so much, close-by, is where He will always be.
John 14:18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.
The word translated comfortless, is the Greek word orphanos. It’s where we get our English word orphan. It is to be alone without the shelter and guidance that being loved by a parent, or guardian can provide. But He wanted us to know that abandoned and alone was not to be our fate, because He sent the Holy Spirit to be with us always. I remember reading in the Readers Digest about a confrontation between a mother and an alligator. The alligator had seized her son by the foot, but mom did not back down. Her own fears did not rule her, but were buried by the love of her son. Though the alligator was stronger, and determined, it was mom that won the day. She dug in and wouldn’t let go, and her desperate efforts succeeded when the gator sought to reposition its hold. A moments relaxing of the predator’s grasp, enabled mom to pull her child to safety. Afterward, he could show those that cared to ask, the marks left by her fingernails…evidence of love and the tenacious courage that springs from love.
Romans 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
Romans 8:39 Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Unlike that mother, our guardian has no equal, and we need never fear Him being over-matched. We are safe… not even death can separate us.
Psalms 139 7:12
7 Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
8 If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
10 Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
11 If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.
12 Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.
But more than just safety, we desire involvement with our caretaker. “Come Down” is our insistent call. It’s good to know, it’s what He wants too. I expect Him to draw closer when I’m looking for Him. That’s the joy of praise and worship, or prayer, or bible study or any of the other ways we endeavor to touch Him. And you know what, when we’re persistent, He does just that.
Jeremiah 29:13
And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
Quotes from KJV.
