The baby monitor crackled softly, a tiny voice wailing from upstairs, and Anna buried her face in her hands at the kitchen table. The stack of unfolded laundry blurred through her tears, and a third reheating of the coffee sat untouched on the counter.
She thought parenting would be simpler — love, patience, and a steady hand. But lately, love felt stretched thin, patience burned away like morning mist under a relentless summer sun. Was she doing this right? Was she enough?
A soft knock at the back door startled her. Pastor Lewis stood there, a worn Bible in his hand and a smile that felt like stepping into warmth after a bitter wind.
"I was just driving by," he said, stepping in. "Felt like I should check on you."
Anna pressed the heel of her hand against her damp cheek, embarrassed. "I'm fine. Just... tired."
He studied her kindly, then sat across from her. Gently, Pastor Lewis opened the Bible to Deuteronomy 6:6–7 and read aloud: "'These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.'"
Anna stared at him, the words sinking deep. She thought of yesterday — the blurted prayers over peanut butter sandwiches, the Bible verses stuck to the fridge with magnets, the bedtime stories that ended in sleepy 'I love you's before tiny eyes fluttered closed. They hadn’t been grand, polished, or perfect. But maybe... maybe that was the point.
"It's not about getting everything right," Pastor Lewis said, as if reading her worry. "It's about planting seeds. Tiny ones. Every day."
Upstairs, her daughter, Ella, wailed again. Anna sighed, standing. "She’s cutting another tooth. I don't know how to help her."
"You love her," he said simply. "God takes care of the rest."
Anna climbed the stairs slowly, each step a whispered prayer. In the nursery, moonlight pooled across the floor. Ella, flushed and damp, sobbed miserably in her crib. Anna scooped her up, pressing her close.
Back and forth they rocked, the chair creaking in the quiet rhythm of comfort. Anna nestled her daughter closer, humming the old hymn her grandmother once sang: "Great is Thy faithfulness... morning by morning new mercies I see..."
Ella shuddered, then slowly stilled against her chest, a tiny hand curling into Anna’s collar, as if to say, “Don’t go.”
In that dim, silvery room, Anna felt a surge of fierce love, warmth, and something else — a steady, unwavering presence. She wasn’t alone. God’s arms were around both of them, ever watchful, ever kind.
Tears slipped down her cheeks, but this time they were different — not bitter or desperate, but sweet with hope.
"I don't have to be perfect," she whispered into the soft crown of Ella’s head. "Just faithful."
In the quiet, she felt it: a holy yes.
Downstairs, the coffee had gone cold again, but Anna didn’t mind. She shifted Ella against her shoulder, savoring the rare peace, the miracle tucked against her heart.
Tomorrow would bring its storms, but tonight, she breathed in the scent of her daughter’s hair, and rested in the anchor of God’s unchanging love. No matter the mistakes, the chaos, the worries — they were held.
And that was enough.
—
Bible Verses for Reflection:
Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (NIV)
"These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
Proverbs 22:6 (ESV)
"Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it."
Isaiah 40:11 (NIV)
"He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young."
Psalm 127:3 (NIV)
"Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him."
Philippians 1:6 (NIV)
"Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
The baby monitor crackled softly, a tiny voice wailing from upstairs, and Anna buried her face in her hands at the kitchen table. The stack of unfolded laundry blurred through her tears, and a third reheating of the coffee sat untouched on the counter.
She thought parenting would be simpler — love, patience, and a steady hand. But lately, love felt stretched thin, patience burned away like morning mist under a relentless summer sun. Was she doing this right? Was she enough?
A soft knock at the back door startled her. Pastor Lewis stood there, a worn Bible in his hand and a smile that felt like stepping into warmth after a bitter wind.
"I was just driving by," he said, stepping in. "Felt like I should check on you."
Anna pressed the heel of her hand against her damp cheek, embarrassed. "I'm fine. Just... tired."
He studied her kindly, then sat across from her. Gently, Pastor Lewis opened the Bible to Deuteronomy 6:6–7 and read aloud: "'These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.'"
Anna stared at him, the words sinking deep. She thought of yesterday — the blurted prayers over peanut butter sandwiches, the Bible verses stuck to the fridge with magnets, the bedtime stories that ended in sleepy 'I love you's before tiny eyes fluttered closed. They hadn’t been grand, polished, or perfect. But maybe... maybe that was the point.
"It's not about getting everything right," Pastor Lewis said, as if reading her worry. "It's about planting seeds. Tiny ones. Every day."
Upstairs, her daughter, Ella, wailed again. Anna sighed, standing. "She’s cutting another tooth. I don't know how to help her."
"You love her," he said simply. "God takes care of the rest."
Anna climbed the stairs slowly, each step a whispered prayer. In the nursery, moonlight pooled across the floor. Ella, flushed and damp, sobbed miserably in her crib. Anna scooped her up, pressing her close.
Back and forth they rocked, the chair creaking in the quiet rhythm of comfort. Anna nestled her daughter closer, humming the old hymn her grandmother once sang: "Great is Thy faithfulness... morning by morning new mercies I see..."
Ella shuddered, then slowly stilled against her chest, a tiny hand curling into Anna’s collar, as if to say, “Don’t go.”
In that dim, silvery room, Anna felt a surge of fierce love, warmth, and something else — a steady, unwavering presence. She wasn’t alone. God’s arms were around both of them, ever watchful, ever kind.
Tears slipped down her cheeks, but this time they were different — not bitter or desperate, but sweet with hope.
"I don't have to be perfect," she whispered into the soft crown of Ella’s head. "Just faithful."
In the quiet, she felt it: a holy yes.
Downstairs, the coffee had gone cold again, but Anna didn’t mind. She shifted Ella against her shoulder, savoring the rare peace, the miracle tucked against her heart.
Tomorrow would bring its storms, but tonight, she breathed in the scent of her daughter’s hair, and rested in the anchor of God’s unchanging love. No matter the mistakes, the chaos, the worries — they were held.
And that was enough.
—
Bible Verses for Reflection:
Deuteronomy 6:6-7 (NIV)
"These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up."
Proverbs 22:6 (ESV)
"Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it."
Isaiah 40:11 (NIV)
"He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young."
Psalm 127:3 (NIV)
"Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him."
Philippians 1:6 (NIV)
"Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
