Come Unto Me

Come! Come now!(Imperative) to me, all you collective individuals who are weary and have grown exhausted with toil or burdens or grief and are to loaded with a burden of rites and unwarranted precepts and I will to cause or permit one to cease from any movement or labour in order to recover and collect his strength, to give rest, refresh, to give one’s self rest, take rest to keep quiet, of calm and patient expectation. 

As the mother of a too-soon walking, crawling and climbing infant, part of my wondrous job was to kiss and hug the little one when she fell and got an owie. Seeing her eyes and heart drawn to me at the slightest little pain or discomfort brought such joy and contentment to my heart. It made my heart rejoice to the heavens that I was so loved and so needed.

Like all mothers, sometimes the boo-boo was so slight, I couldn’t even tell where the damage was, and I just kissed a large circumference around the area pointed to in babbling toddlerese, just to insure the heart was mended.

Like all mothers, I have used hundreds of unnecessary Band-Aids, knowing the attention was just building trust so they would bring to me the real pains in their future life. It is building grounds for both of us, the truster and the trustee.

But now, as a too-mature 4 year old, sometimes when little Rebekah is hurt, she is also angry that she is hurt. Instead of rushing into my arms to let me kiss her owies away, she is upset and stands obstinate, refusing the comforting arms, the loving kisses and the means of restoring happiness. She will even get angry at the chair or at the person who left out the object that she tripped on.

At that time, I either have to make it a matter of obedience and kindly command her to come to me, or I have to physically pick her up and make her come to me so that I can soothe not only her physical pain, but point out the wrong reaction to it.

So, now my job isn’t just to comfort, but to instruct in how she should properly react to troubles. I also remind her that that is what mommies are for, to go to when you need help. I have lovingly and laughingly told her that this is my job, to kiss owies, and she needs to come to me.

Are we any different than children? When we are suffering are we rushing into the arms of our Father, or are we standing, arms crossed, aloof and irritated that this would happen to us? Instead of going for the comfort and strength we need, our hearts are irritated that we are in a position where we need comfort and strength.

Maybe this is why the Lord uses the term “little children” when he asks his disciples to allow the children to come to him. We are told to be as the little children, those whose sinful desires, pride and rebellious natures haven’t caused them to stand afar, those who come running to the arms of those who can help.

The Lord knows our hearts even better than we know the hearts of our children. This is why He had to use the imperative command to “Come, come now!” He can see our hearts, troubled and afar, and He has to lovingly command us to come into His welcoming arms. He commands us to come so that He can relief the burdens and give us rest. That’s His job.

Like a good, Heavenly Father, He’s calling to His hurting children,

Will you climb into the Father’s lap in prayer, and allow Him to kiss away your owies with the power of His Word and His Comforter?