A Nursing Mother Cared Enough To …

II mother with baby
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It’s been one of those nights.

I’m sitting here on our family room sofa and it’s ridiculously early in the morning, but it’s because I have a good bit on my mind. It’s just me and the dogs. And this super quieted home.

There’s something about being up when no one else is, that I sometimes just need. I need the uninterrupted and undistracted moments that these early morning hours always seem to give – calm to my mind.

All the noise of hurry and rush is just not here in these morning moments because it’s His sacred shhhhh that seems to set the mood. As soon as I pick up my Bible and open its page, it’s the joy of His presence that stills and hushes this house – the house of my heart.

“Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory,” Hebrews 3:6.

His presence just does that. It hushes every anxious thought, diminishes every doubt, and fades every fear.

 

Back to my sofa …

 

I poured more coffee and after laying my Bible back on the table, I decided to get on Facebook. I saw that a sweet friend was also on FB at that same early hour, so I messaged her.

“hey girl….you up, too?”

My friend:
“Nursing River :)”   (that’s little babies name:)

Me:
“That’s precious….enjoy it. Love you…”  (I didn’t want to bother that sweet time.)

My friend:
“Love you too! Have fun!”

I figured our visit was over, but it may have been only a few minutes that passed when she wrote:

“You doing okay?”

A question that, for some reason, touched me … I literally stared at those words. But I knew I had a choice – I could either give an upbeat ‘let’s not go there’ kind of answer like, ‘Oh, doing just fine…and you?‘ or ‘Sure! Doing great just keepin’ busy.”  Or,  I could be truthful, take a slight risk and answer her question with bone honesty!

I went with  …

Me:
“Got a lot on my mind and a little bit on my heart.”

My friend:
“How can I pray?”

(Ok, that’s when the flood gates started! When I realized that a nursing mother was up in the wee hours of the morning, yet, she took the time to ask me how she could pray … a nursing mother cared enough to ask me that … I’m telling you, I was so moved. Moved to tears.

And it’s all because … she asked.

I know this young mother and she is one courageous and God-seeking woman. She’s been through a lot in her life, and it’s shaped her into such a godly woman. And for her to care that much, well, I think when I answered her question on how she could pray, I wrote her an entire chapter!

But…

after she read my heart on the screen of her mobile phone, she sent me this:

“I’m stopping to pray for you right now…
That’s a lot to deal with, friend. I don’t know the answers for you as we are in very different stages of life right now. But I can share with you scripture … Isaiah 30:21.”

“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”

Then she sent me this:

“While I’m up I was reading this post you wrote. Look at Psalms verse!”

Shirlee send encouragement

and then she added a little more and ended our time together with:

“You’re in my thoughts and prayers. Thanks for sharing with me. Xo”

In this whole middle-of-the-night communication, I knew this for certain – it was God doing all the communicating.

No need for emojis, or any graphic art drama added to her words … just 4 simple words full of Sovereign love – “How can I pray?

All I could think of as He was orchestrating all this, was 1 Thess. 2:7-8 — “Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well.”

This nursing mother and I may have shared some words, but ultimately it was because she cared that we shared our lives as well.

Thank you, Shirlee! I’ll remember this time with you forever!

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lisa rippy

3 Comments

  1. Janice Rainey on October 21, 2015 at 4:46 pm

    Praying for you. Love you, sweet friend!!

    • Lisa Rippy on October 21, 2015 at 8:08 pm

      Thank you Janice…love you too!

  2. Lindsay Kent on December 1, 2019 at 1:56 am

    Thank you for this.

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