Daily Devotionals for Women - Today's Encouraging Word from Scripture

THE HIDDEN MEANING OF A BIRTH

Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord.” Genesis 4:1

Though Adam and Eve’s external world had radically changed (from the perfect Garden to a cursed world), their inner life was still somewhat alive to God. My hunch is that they missed Him, longed for Him, dreamed of walking with Him again as they did in the Garden. They remembered His holiness, His glory, and the kind of love with which He loved Him. How could you not miss all of that and grieve the memory!

Childbirth was so difficult, so painful, that I’m confident Eve looked to God for help and strength. She recognized, as she looked into the face of her newborn son, that God had done a miracle. Neither of them had ever seen a baby and to witness life coming from her womb, to hold that infant in her hands was to witness a miraculous act by God Himself.

Probably hundreds of thousands of babies will be born as I’m writing this sentence. Will each mother know that God was involved in the creation of her child? Sadly no. Will each child grow up to know that he or she is a unique creation of Almighty God? Probably not. And when we languish for lack of that knowledge, our self-worth is skewed. The parents who spoke into our life at birth shaped our view of ourselves.

If they failed to celebrate our birth and hold us in their arms with wonder, we will wonder at the meaning of our life. There will be no evidence that we have a Creator who celebrated the day of our birth, not until He chooses to reveal Himself to us and open our spiritual ears to the sound of His heart beating fast for us.

No one should have the right to define my worth except my Creator. Not a parent. Not a caregiver. Not a child. There is no such thing as an unwanted child in the kingdom. Each birth is a miracle regardless of the circumstances. Eve knew it. Cain was the first son in a cursed world yet she could see past the darkness of her times to see the handiwork of God in the face of her son.

When it’s time to sign a birthday card for a friend, I often jot a note that says, “I am praying God will show you how HE is celebrating your birthday today.” Just a glimpse of that will right the wrongs of all those who may have missed the miracle of their birth. God can heal the gaping wounds of those who feel invisible and insignificant.

I am Your plan, Your creation, and Your joy. Always was. Oh how You love me. Amen.

For more from Christine Wyrtzen and Jaime Wyrtzen Lauze, please visit www.daughtersofpromise.org