Baby

Keys to Baby

by Derek & Michelle Brookes

Chapter 1: Babies Are Out of This World

Trailing clouds of glory...
Baby does not start from "zero." He begins somewhere within the mystery and workings of God in the spiritual realm. Baby's spirit is then joined to the physical within you. Realizing this enriches your experience of the miracle of giving birth and parenting. Greet your child upon his inception into this world as you would an angel sent from God--a special angel who will be your friend for eternity because you are his parent. Looking at your child in this way gives you an extra measure of respect and consideration for this new person that you are helping to introduce to life.

A baby is a living soul, formed through the union of a spirit created by God with the physical elements of your body. Finding himself "housed" in a body must be quite a new experience for a baby. That babies are more spiritual than physical when they are born is a fact noted throughout literature and history. As William Wordsworth put it so beautifully:

Our birth is but a sleep and a forgetting;
The soul that rises with us, our life's star,
Hath had elsewhere its setting,
And cometh from afar:
Not in entire forgetfulness,
And not in utter nakedness,
But trailing clouds of glory do we come
From God, who is our home.

Science has its explanations for how children come into being, but when you first hold your baby and look into those little eyes, you know that you are holding a miracle. You are looking at one of the great mysteries of the universe; a glimpse of Heaven and the creative power of God. There in your arms is tangible proof of the love God has for you, for He has chosen you to parent a new soul.

Sophisticated, worldly-wise,
I searched for God and found Him not;
Until one day, the world forgot,
I found Him in my baby's eyes.
-- Mary Afton Thacker

Baby can seem like an accident--but never is!

God is using you dear mothers to create an immortal soul. God has done it, but He's also using you to do it. You're the tool, creating something that is going to last forever. It's the biggest miracle since the creation of the world: Every time a woman has a baby there's another immortal soul that is going to live forever. What a miracle!

It's very mysterious how the Lord orders His creation and plans it and decides on who should have babies and who should not, but we know that He does not make any mistakes about making babies. God ordained you to give birth if He gave you a baby. God is the Creator of human souls. God is the Creator of pregnancy. We are merely the human instruments that God uses.

I don't believe that any human being, any human spirit, is created without the touch of the divine, the touch of the hand of God! I believe that when God decides He's going to have another soul in existence in this universe, He makes that definite decision and He creates that soul and endows it with the spirit; that it is a direct creation of God, ordained of the Spirit of God. --D.B.B.

The Word of God teaches that God actually plans for children, even when we haven't.

Thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise Thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made ... My substance was not hid from Thee, when I was made in secret... Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in Thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them (Psalm 139:13-16, KJV).

God, His angels, and the saints in Heaven actively communicate with the spirits of children even for some time after they are born. Beautiful realizations such as these help nurture in us a reverence for life and a healthy respect for our children. They are not just "ours," they also belong to God. Jesus even cautioned His disciples:

Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that in Heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in Heaven (Matthew 18:10).

Each of us is special to God, and each has a unique purpose for being here. This world is a place of learning through which we all must pass on our journey home to God. Your baby, too, has a special purpose in life. Why else would such an innocent little one leave Heaven on such a perilous journey unless life is very important? As parents, our job is to help each new arrival to this world get settled and safely started on their journey through life.

Faith for a child--"all things are possible to him who believes" (Mark 9:23)
One of the qualities a parent needs most is faith--faith that God has chosen them for the job, and faith to believe that their child comes into life with a mission, an unknown as yet but very good and compelling reason for them to be born. We should live that belief for every child, and especially our own.

Children need someone who believes in them, and as a parent, that is one of your most important jobs. Do not underestimate the power of a believing parent. That special confidence and hope that a parent has in a child has often been the beacon needed to guide many to great accomplishments for God and others. Faith in a child's unseen future, faith in their calling to some good and noble cause in life, ignites hope and gives them an abiding inner confidence that will carry them through many rough places. A parent's faith stimulates a child to reach beyond the small world of his or her own self, and to search for what it is that they are to become. This isn't to advocate pushy parenting--parents placing too much importance on achievement, or forcing their children to "succeed"--but rather having a deep abiding faith that given lots of love and the proper guidance, children will be all that God intends them to be.

The Father of all fathers cares for His child
Most parents greet their new baby with pure joy. However, if you feel unprepared or incapable as a parent, or if your child enters this world physically or mentally challenged, baby's arrival may greatly test your faith. Perhaps it's hard for you to view this baby as a gift from God, or you question His timing. Your circumstances may be difficult, or those around you may not be giving you the support you need. Still, if you are able to pull back a little from your immediate situation and consider things from the perspective of history, then you might realize that God seems to do His greatest work in situations we consider impossible. Consider the mother of Moses, who defied the king's commandment that all Hebrew baby boys be killed at birth, and later acted as a nursemaid slave while the king's daughter raised Moses as her own. Or consider Jesus Himself who was born in a stable. His parents had to flee the country to escape the jealous rage of a mad king determined to find and kill this baby boy.

Your baby is created by God, and God will help you be a loving parent and find a way to care for your little one no matter what your circumstances.

When keeping Baby is in question
Most children will at some time in life present a great test of faith for their parents. Sometimes that test comes even before they are born. God's Word encourages you to make the choice for parenthood. The bottom line is that you are not alone; you are in a parenting partnership with God. Children are given by God, the Father of life,and they are not bad gifts, they are not punishments--they are signs of His great love and confidence that together with Him, you can make it. So, if you are a besieged parent-to-be, you must resist the lie that this new life is not important.

Your child is not a mistake or a bad thing. Even if you "know you made a mistake," God never makes a mistake. He knows what He is doing. The creation of a child is His doing, and every life is important and precious to Him. You must believe that God cares. He cares for you and your child, and He wants to help you and provide for you as you learn to trust and lean on Him. The more difficult your situation seems, the greater reason there is to believe that God has something very special in store for you and your little one, if you will just hang on and trust Him.

Life can be a stormy experience sometimes, and your faith as a parent, as a provider, and as a source of love for these little ones will be tested. You will need a lot of inner strength to meet the many demands that will be placed on you. For many, parenting has at some time or another seemed impossible, or just too much to handle. It is often hard to reach out and help someone else when we feel so in need of help ourselves--but it is in giving that we receive, and it is in believing that we see the answer.

So even if you don't initially feel great love for your expected baby, even if you feel like rejecting God's gift, if you will ask God to give you a loving, receiving heart and the faith you need for parenting, He will. Any situation can be turned around with the help of God and love. God's love and your love, can work miracles. Believe it! "Ask, and it will be given to you."(Matthew 7:7) Take it by faith; just believe it because God said so. God gave the child, and He will help you take care of him. Where He guides, He provides. He will meet your needs if you keep calling on Him in your time of trouble. No matter how difficult the situation may appear, if you choose to fight for your child, God will fight for you and someday you'll see that this was God's great blessing in disguise.

If your child is physically or mentally challenged
Every little child who comes into the world is precious to the Lord. He loves each one, but they also need your love, encouragement, and prayer. They need you to have faith in them, to believe that God has sent them to you, because He knows they need the wellspring of love you have to give. Though times will be difficult and your heart will ache to see the challenges facing your little one, remember that no seeming lack is so great that it cannot be bridged by a parents' love, faith and encouragement. Believe in these little ones. Believe that God has them in the palm of His hand. Their path may be different than that which you had dreamed of or planned for them, but God's plan is greater than yours is. The beautifying of your little one in His love and His Spirit, and your own spiritual deepening as you look to God for understanding and strength, are of far greater value than a perfect body or mind. These innocent little ones are very precious in His eyes. He will never leave or forsake them. And they, through their simplicity and sufferings, will come to know Him and trust Him in a very special way, and so gain the greatest peace and happiness of all. Keep looking to God and trusting in Him, and He will indeed be with you, holding your hand, comforting and encouraging you.

Babies are forever--a touch of Heaven
Each baby is the first and only one of its kind: a special someone who has entered your life, someone who has something important to do, someone who by faith will live on into eternity with you. Having a child can be the beginning of a relationship and blessing that will last beyond the boundaries of this present life.

Even if you have ups and downs now, if you love God, ultimately you will live in peace and harmony with all of God's children of faith in God's eternal Kingdom of Love to come. Children are a touch of that Kingdom of Heaven, the beauty, the innocence, the simple love. Turn their hearts towards God and they will become a great blessing from God. Turn them from God and they will be a source of sorrow.

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