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We are like Babies in the Hands of God
Fr Alvan Ibeh
St Peter's Church, Gorleston
“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!” (Isaiah 49:15)
On that faithful day, after I had finished Mass and was clearing up, a couple approached me to inform me about their baby’s baptism. After our discussion, I asked them of their baby and they told me she was with her granny, who was also at Mass that morning. I requested them to bring her so I can see her and bless her too. They were happy and immediately went and brought the child who was peacefully sleeping to me. Like Simeon in Luke 2:28, I took the child in my arms, closed my eyes and prayed for her and her parents. When I opened my eyes, I saw she was still peacefully sleeping. What struck me, was the way she was so peaceful, undisturbed and unperturbed by whatever was going on. From the time I took her from her granny, till the time I handed her over, she never stretched or even opened her eyes. I got this message from the Holy Spirit saying, “This is exactly how God wants you to be in His hands”. I turned to the parents and grandparents of the baby and said to them, “You see how your child is so relaxed and undisturbed in our hands? This is exactly how we are in the hands of God when we trust Him wholeheartedly”
There is something deeply humbling and profoundly comforting about realizing that before God, we are like babies- helpless, dependent, and completely in need of His care. Just as an infant relies on their parent for food, protection, warmth, and love so too do we rely on God for every breath we take and every step we make
Babies don’t worry about tomorrow. They are not bothered by today, or even this moment. They don’t plan or strive, they rest, they cry, they trust- and somehow, they are provided for. This is the kind of posture God desires from us: childlike trust. Not immaturity, not childishness but absolute trust and dependence. Not ignorance, but confidence in His love
Jesus emphasised this when He said in Matthew 18:3, “Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven”. In his hands, we are safe. In His arms we find peace just like the baby I held in my arms. Even when life seems uncertain, God cradles us like a loving Father, and He never let go of us- “I will never leave nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5)
The hands of God are not only strong but tender. They formed us (Psalm 139:13), carry us (Isaiah 46:4), and hold us (John 10:28). As babies in His hands, we are constantly being nurtured, shaped, and guided- even when we don’t understand how or why
Like this little baby I held in my hands, let us rest today in the assurance that we are not in control- and we don’t need to be. We are in the hands of the one who holds the universe and yet cares intimately for each of us
Pray with me: Heavenly Father, teach me to rest in you like a baby in your arms. Remind me daily that I am not alone or forgotten, but cherished, nurtured, and carried by your love. Help me to trust, even when I don’t understand, and to walk with you in childlike faith. Amen.
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