Is God Your "Soft One"?

After the first four kiddos, my husband and I were quite certain we had seen and experienced a lot regarding children’s habits, quirks and idiosyncrasies.  In fact, we were probably a bit too confident in our ability to roll with the punches UNTIL…

…along came Makenna!  While we expected each of our kids to be different, #5 decided to declare her own individuality from the get-go.  From her quite scary “push her out or she may not make it” entrance into this world to her “I don’t need to walk until I am 17 months attitude”, she has challenged everything we had come to expect from our Kovacs Kids.  So, when the issue of a security blanket came about, why would she start conforming now?  Yes, Macdaddy is our only blankie kid!

Over the past couple of years, Makenna has grown ever so attached to this swatch of fabric affectionately known as “Soft One”.  Being the last of three girls, she had several pink, fuzzy blankets with which she could snuggle, but, forsaking all others, this one and only this one was the Chosen One…her “Soft One”.  

It looked like all the others, but she knew the difference.  She could see the difference.  Feel the difference.  Smell the difference.  Even in the darkness of her room at bedtime, she would call me out if I ever tried to pass one of the cleaner, less dingy imposters off as her Soft One.  “No Mom…I want Soft One!” she would cry.

She cuddles it.

She cradles it.

She craves it.

She talks to it.

She rubs it.

She hugs it.

She runs with it.

She dances with it.

She covers herself with it.

And at times she is absolutely desperate for it.

Whether she is sad, happy, tired, hungry, bored, scared, angry or uncertain…Soft One is never far from her mind and always close at hand.  And when she gets ahold of it….aaaah…the look on her face is one of pure joy and peace.

Watching her one day with her blanket got me thinking.  Is God my “Soft One”?  Is He yours?

Do you reach for Him when you wake unsettled in the middle of the night?

Do you make sure He is with you wherever you go?

Does He ride in the car with you? Run errands with you?

Do you dance with Him when you are happy?

Do you take Him to church?

Do you cling tightly to Him when life gets uncertain?

The Bible reminds us that He is to be our Comforter (Psalm 94:19), our Lord of Peace (2 Thessalonians 3:16), our Joy (Psalm 43:4) and, even, our Friend (John 15:15).  If only I could remember that for a single day!

Now, before you start getting all child psychologist on me, I am aware that at some point Soft One needs to become a distant memory.  As we prepare Makenna for the possibility of preschool in the fall, we have already discussed with her the need to learn to rely less on the blanket (even though it is stinkin’ cute).  One day soon, she will grow old enough that she doesn’t need it at all.  The blanket will be replaced with Barbies, books and boys and a small part of me will be very sad. **sigh**

In the meantime, I am grateful that I will never grow too old to seek comfort in God.  I will never have to relegate Him to a memory box in the corner of the garage.  I will never have to find a way to manage a single day without Him.  He is always there to cuddle with, talk to, dance with and cover me.  I pray for the daily craving and desperation to spend time with my “Soft One”…

“When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul.” Psalm 94:19 NIV