In Awe and Wonder

So there I am, standing in the delivery room minutes after my wife has delivered our second child (delivering faster than Dominos as a friend remarked). Watching the nurses check her over, the fact that I was a Dad again was just beginning to soak in. Then, little Haven was placed in my arms and it really hit me. This beautiful child, who will forever be part of me and my wife and an awesome creation of God, is really here!

I watched my wife carry this little heartbeat and kicking machine for 39 weeks. Moms have the unenviable task of laboring and sacrificing for nine months but also the privelage of bonding in a way that Dads will never understand. Us guys are excited and supportive but our jaws don't drop until that beautiful creation reaches our arms (in my case, it was a watery discharge building up in my eyes). It's an unforgettable and irreplaceable experience to fully realize in just a few moments what you have taken part in creating and will now be responsible for.

As I looked upon my daughter's face, I found myself filled with an incredible sense of awe and wonder at the beauty of this new life that I was cradling. God already knew Haven before she was born and had protected her and my wife during an intense auto accident. This moment was a special one for our family, and I was infinitely thankful for God's grace and provision.

My sense of awe and wonder reminded me of the many times those words are used in scripture. Wonder is a word used throughout the OT to describe extrodinary and hard to explain things (pele'). Many times it is used to desribe God and his masterwork. We find this word in Psalms 89:5, "The heavens praise of your wonders." Just as explaining God and his love are difficult to put into words, describing what it feels like to be a Father of a daughter for the first time is next to impossible.

As for the word "awe," it is used in the OT (such as Ecclesiastes 5:7) and is from the root word Yare' which means to fear, revere, or in this case, "to stand in awe of." This word is in some ways the action form of wonder as it refers to our feelings and attitude of respect and awe before God and his creations. I hope that I never lose my sense of awe for the work that God has done and will do in Haven's (and my son Jackson's) life.

Just like the worship song, "I stand in awe of you," yesterday's experience in the delivery room is a vivid reminder that I have two incredible wonders in my life that I can be thankful for and stand in awe of. Today, I will join heaven and praise God for His newest wonder!