2 Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, Like a weaned child with his mother;
Like a weaned child is my soul within me. Psalm 131:2 (NKJV)
By Bro. John L. Cash
The first grandchild always gets the privilege of “naming” the grandparents. Susan and I are hoping Landon will call us “Mamie” and “Grandpa”—although I’m pretty sure we’ll answer to whatever he calls us. Some people have snickered that I’d like to be called “Grandpa.” I guess it does sound pretty old and old-fashioned as a name for a man who is only 55. But everybody I ever knew who wore the name “Grandpa” was awfully good at it and thought being a great grandpa was serious business. Gwen Rockwood’s grandfather, “Grandpa Mac Criswell” is a prime example of this.
I’ve taken care of a lot of babies in my life. But, I swear, I’ve never seen a child fight sleep as hard as Landon Cash. I think he’s scared to go to sleep because he’s afraid that he’s going to miss something; if he doses off, he’s bound to miss a party somewhere. In desperation, I’ve resorted to all of those cowardly remedies that folks turn to when they have a baby who won’t go to sleep. I’ve rocked him and held him for the duration of his nap. I’ve burned half a tank of gas driving him around on country roads as he snoozed. I’ve stood up and danced him around in my arms for an hour until he finally passed out from exhaustion. That is, I used to do all of those things. I used to do all those things, until I found my secret weapon: Mamie’s Bathrobe.
Susan has a fleecy blue bathrobe that she often wears when she’s rocking Baby Landon. One morning (in desperation) after Landon had been fussing for a solid 45 minutes, I just had a wild hunch to spread it out on the bed and lay him down on it. He immediately rubbed both hands on it and pulled it up to his cheeks. Then an amazing thing happened. His eyes rolled back in their sockets, he curled up in a fetal position, and he began to snore. Landon Cash was fast asleep.
Needless to say, for every nap since then I’ve made him a pallet from Mamie’s Bathrobe. Amazingly enough, his morning nap has increased from 45 minutes to 2 full hours. Yes, indeed, if the house ever catches on fire, the two things I’m grabbing are the U.S. Savings Bonds and Mamie’s Bathrobe. Surely something that brings that much comfort to a child is worth keeping around.
Did you know that the Bible says that comfort like that is available to the children of God? Today’s Scripture lesson (at the top) is the second verse of Psalm 131. David says that he is like a “weaned child.” In the original language, it means an infant has just finished a feeding. The Psalmist is completely peaceful, well-nourished, and content. Everything is right because he has put his full trust in the Living God.
Psalm 131 is a short one, just three verses. Study it today during your devotional time. Why neglect comfort when it’s as readily available as your bathrobe?
Dr. John L. Cash is the “Country Preacher Dad.” He was raised in Stuttgart, Arkansas, and has spent the last 32 years being a country preacher in the piney woods five miles south of the little town of Hickory, Mississippi. He recently retired after 28 years as a Mississippi public schoolteacher, and is now a stay-at-home-grandpa with his new grandson, Landon Cash. He and his lovely wife, Susan, have just moved into a pretty brick house in town (where the parsonage cats are busy exploring things.) Their kids include Spencer (age 26), his wife Madeline (age 26), and Seth (age 23), and his wife Leanne (age 22). You can send him a note at brotherjohn@ilovechurchcamp.com.
