Hugs and high fives to Rachel Kyle, our newest Mango! Or kiwi mango, since she’s a New Zealander now. 😉 We are thrilled to have such a thoughtful, wise, and talented writer join our team. =) To get to know her better, you’ll want to read her About Rachel page. Plus, she has some mighty adorable kids!! Welcome, Rachel! We’re excited to have you. =) ~Kristen and Ashley
My oldest son (we’ll call him Brother) has been riding a balance bike for almost two years. When he first got it, it was a bit big and bulky for him. His helmet was droopy until we tightened it to the tightest settings and lowered the bike seat so that he could ride it comfortably. He caught on incredibly fast and has zoomed around at lightning speed. As he increased in confidence and height, my husband raised the seat and made some adjustments so that the bike would fit his needs better.
For Christmas this year, my parents bought him a brand new bike. It came with training wheels. Brother calls these “stabilizers.” We took the training wheels off because we were sure that with all of his expertise on a balance bike, he wouldn’t really need them.
On Christmas Day, we gave him his new bike and he wanted to ride it right away. He went outside with my husband and hopped on. This bike was taller than he thought it would be. He couldn’t touch the ground like he could on his other bike. He was afraid. We knew that he could do it with a bit of practice so he strapped on his helmet and tried to take off. My husband held on to him and after a few white knuckle laps around the yard, he’d had enough.
He came to me with tears welling up in his eyes. “I like my old bike. I don’t want this one. This one is too big and scary.” I looked at my husband who agreed that we should probably put the training wheels back on, but was sure he would have no problem after that. My husband worked to make the adjustments while Brother watched warily outside of the garage. When it was ready to go, we encouraged Brother to hop back on and try again. He was too afraid. He had a scary experience moments before with the same bike, what difference would those little extra wheels make?
My hero of a husband bent down and looked him in the eye and said,
“I know it’s hard.
We are going to do it.
I’ll be right here the whole time.”
As I heard my husband say this, it struck me how he was talking about something deeper than riding a bike. In that moment, he began trying to lay a foundation to enable Brother to do hard things. We want him to know that he has support, so that big and scary things can be dealt with and conquered together.
Is it any different to what God wants for His children?
We say, “It’s too big! It’s too uncomfortable! I liked what was!”
God says, “I know it’s hard. We are going to do it. I’ll be right here the whole time.”
Sometimes, the things that seem daunting are actually laying the foundation for us to be able to do really hard things for God. God meets us where we are. He makes adjustments for us as we grow, he gives us the verses of His Word as “stabilizers” that help balance us in the shaky times. He knows it is hard. He doesn’t pretend that it won’t be. He promises that He will join us for the tough stuff and to be right there the whole time.
In my opinion, Psalms and Proverbs are the “stabilizers” of the Bible. There are so many chunks of wisdom throughout these two books. It is no wonder why these sections are so popular and are repeated from generation to generation. A student of these scriptures would not have to dig through deep context to get the meaning that the writer was trying to convey. The ideas are presented simply and are accessible for understanding to all who may read them.
We had to take action and put the training wheels back on Brother’s bike when he needed help. Psalm 132:3-5 is a favorite of mine because it shows that we have to take action in giving God priority in our lives just as David did by making the Temple of the Lord his priority. This is the first step in opening our hearts to trusting Him and believing all of verses that confirm His love for us.
Surely I will not enter my house,
Nor lie on my bed;
I will not give sleep to my eyes
Or slumber to my eyelids,
Until I find a place for the Lord,
A dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.
Here is a list of some of my favorite stabilizing scriptures. There are so many that it was hard to choose! Whether in the shaky times or the balanced times, write these on your heart and be reminded that God is by our side the whole way.
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