In the earliest of days of starting a church, our nursery was just outside the meeting space door where we worshiped. We met there for almost six months. As we transitioned to our next facility, the space there also had a nursery close to the meeting space which served as our auditorium. In both those instances, even when there was a full nursery, as we would begin to hear a baby cry, soon after a mom would get up and make her way toward the nursery. Even with all those babies in there, only one mom at a time would get up and head back that direction. It made me wonder, how does she know?
How Does She Know?
As a dad of four children who have all spent time in the nursery, I would not know when it was one of mine. I saw Kelly get up occasionally and head back that direction. I would ask her later about it. She would tell me, “Yes, that was _____ crying.”
How does she know?
It fascinates me. I am their dad. I could hear a baby crying. However, I could not tell if it was mine or one of the other many children back there. But Kelly knew. So did many other moms. In fact, it was rare someone ever had to leave the nursery and come out to get a mom’s attention to come help with her baby. Why? Because the moms knew.
A mom’s ear is inclined toward her baby’s cry.
It happened at my house in the middle of the night as well. Sometimes I would hear one of the children and would ask, “Which one is that?” Of course, even in the middle of the night getting awoken out of sleep, she would still know. Or, more common, I would get aroused out of sleep as Kelly got up out of bed and headed out of the room. She heard the baby. Why? Because she knew.
A mom’s ear is inclined toward her baby’s cry.
Sometimes, one of our children would just whisper for mom. Somehow she would hear it. I would ask what was up. She would tell me that one of them were calling out for her. “Calling out?” To her, yes. Yet, only a whisper.
A Valuable Lesson
This reminds me that God’s ear is also inclined toward us as His children as well. Check out this verse:
Because He has inclined His ear to me,
Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live. (Ps 116:2)
God inclines His ear toward us. In fact, the rest of the thought:
I love the Lord, because He has heard
My voice and my supplications. (Ps 116:1)
He exclaims how much he loves the Lord and then directly says that God inclines His ear toward him.
To incline the ear means to stretch out, incline, bend, or to pitch a tent. God listens. In fact, not simply listens but leans down to listen. Even when we whisper, God hears us calling out to Him.
How about this?
I waited patiently for the Lord;
And He inclined to me,
And heard my cry. (Psalm 40:1)
God hears our cry. From Ozark, Missouri. The one from Atlanta, Georgia. All the way around the world in Ukraine. And, on and on and on. Anywhere and everywhere there is a follower of God, He inclines His ear to hear us.
So Call Out to the Lord!
This day, call out to the Lord. These two passages can help get you started.
O Lord, God of my salvation,
I have cried out day and night before You.
Let my prayer come before You;
Incline Your ear to my cry. (Psalm 88:1-2)
In You, O Lord, I put my trust;
Let me never be put to shame.
Deliver me in Your righteousness, and cause me to escape;
Incline Your ear to me, and save me.
Be my strong refuge,
To which I may resort continually;
You have given the commandment to save me,
For You are my rock and my fortress. (Ps 71:1-3)
Image Credit Katie Smith
KevinCarson.com | Wisdom for Life in Christ Together
Nope, not me. Our daughter was temporarily separated from both of us in a store when she was little. The wail she let out was heard by her father not me. He knew it was her immediately, even though he didn’t realize she was alone. I was oblivious even though we were about the same distance away from her. So this might be true for some parents, but not for all. Both parents can equally ‘know’…or not.