“Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep My commandments, that it might be well with them and their children forever!”
-Deuteronomy 5:29
This lament of God toward His children breaks my heart, for in it, I see His Father’s heart. A longing such as this was beyond my ability to comprehend until I became a parent myself, and even then I couldn’t understand until that child became my rebellious teenager. Oh, then I could begin to relate to the depth of His desire to protect and provide. Only then could I understand the depth of sorrow to have that protection and provision rejected!
Though my children are grown now, I still ache for them when they make decisions I know are not good for them; that if they would just listen to me and do what I tell them, things would go so much better for them. How do I know this? Because I am older and wiser. Because I understand what causes sorrow and regret and what brings peace and joy.
Isn’t that what our Father knows as well? Even better than what I could ever know? Oh, your heart, Lord! I “get it.” Help me, Lord, to do as you say and to follow your commands- for love of you and that it might “be well with [me] and [my] children forever.” Amen.
