I babysat my three-month-old grandson this week. Mommy and daddy were both at work so I had him for the day. Once again I have come to fully appreciate the life and commitment of all those stay-at-home moms. Caring for a three-month old baby is a full-time job for sure. It’s a fascinating, never-ending cycle: sleep, “play”, eat. Repeat and add a diaper change and some crying. All day every day. It may sound mundane, but there was nowhere else I’d have rather been that day. Caring for a baby is work. But it’s a labor of love.

It got me to thinking about how God has to babysit me. It’s most certainly labor. And it is only because of love that He even pays attention to me, much less forgives, cares for, helps, and heals me. My life must look like an endless cycle of sleep, play, and eat. Repeat and add some mess ups and some crying.

Just like I couldn’t leave my grandson for a minute, God has to keep constant watch over me. If I’m left to myself, as Martin Luther famously said, I will bring it all to destruction.

Caring for me must be a whole lot of work. More than I’d even care to admit. But certainly not more than an Almighty God can handle. I know I don’t make it easy on Him. When I whine, complain, and go my own way He comes after me. I sin, self-destruct, and stray.

But having recently remembered Good Friday and celebrated Easter I know that His care for me is a labor of love. He sacrificed His only Son for me. I can’t imagine the pain it caused Him. My mess ups and inbred sin put Jesus on the cross. It’s difficult for me to accept that my God could love me more than I love my grandson. But He does. Infinitely more.

I feel far less than worthy of that kind of love. I almost want to tell God that He shouldn’t love me. But when I remember there isn’t anything my little grandson could do to keep me from loving him, I get just a slight sense of how God must feel about me. It’s far above my understanding. All I can do is thank and praise Him for His mercy.

It’s a labor of love.

How are you reminded of God’s love for you?