“Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” (1 Peter 5:5-6)
After weeks of preparing, Luke and his twin sister, Jill, were finally spending the night in their treehouse. Dad had helped Luke put some finishing touches on the treehouse – like sanding out the splinters. Mom and Jill had made hot chocolate and poured some into a tall thermos for Luke, and some more into a tall thermos for Jill. Luke and Jill had dragged their sleeping bags and pillows up the ladder and spread them out on the plywood floor. For a nightlight, they captured lightning bugs and put them into a large glass jar with tiny airholes poked in the lid.
It was a beautiful night for stargazing, and the crickets were chirping happily. Jill had brought extra blankets and sweatshirts, in case it cooled down during the night. Setting the jar in the center of the treehouse, they nestled down into their sleeping bags and whispered and laughed and stared up at the stars until they finally began to feel sleepy.
Suddenly – creak!
Luke sat straight up in his sleeping bag. He had been dozing off, but he knew he had heard a noise. Creak. There it was again! Crackle, swish, creak.
Someone was climbing up the ladder! And whoever it was had to be heavier than a squirrel or a raccoon or a possum. By this time, Jill was awake and sitting up, too. Luke could see from the glow of the lightning bugs that she was as scared as he was. Clunk. Creak!
It had to be someone climbing the ladder. Luke and Jill were too afraid to cry out. There was nothing to throw at the intruder, except the jar of lightning bugs. They froze and braced themselves to face whoever was coming up the ladder. Suddenly, two big hands grabbed the top of the ladder, and there was a blinding flash of white light.
A moment later, Luke and Jill heard a hearty laugh that they recognized immediately. “Dad!” they groaned.
Shaking with laughter and balancing a Polaroid camera in his hand, Dad climbed the rest of the way into the treehouse. “Wait till you two see this picture!”
They waited for the picture to develop and laughed at the “o” shape of Jill’s mouth and the wild, wide-eyed shock on Luke’s face. “What a mean prank, Dad!” Luke said. He pretended to be mad, but he could not help but grin.
Once Luke and Jill knew that the mysterious noisemaker was their father, they were not afraid at all. They knew that their dad was a strong man and that nobody could try to get them if he was with them. They also knew that he cared about them. It was a relief for them to know that their scary intruder was actually someone who cared about them. They had nothing to worry about from Dad.
God, our heavenly Father, is more powerful and wise than we could ever be, but 1 Peter chapter 5 teaches us that we should throw all our worries and concerns upon His shoulders. He is almighty, so He is able to help us. He is also compassionate and loving, so He wants to help us.
Your dad, or other men you know, might want to help you – but they might not always be able to. Other people are able to help, but they do not want to help. God is both able and willing to help. The Bible teaches that God is both mighty and caring. He is stronger than you, and He cares for you! Throw your worries and concerns onto Him.
Almighty God cares for His people and is able and willing to help them.
My Response:
» Has God shown Himself to be a caring God?
» How should I respond to a mighty and caring God when I am afraid or in trouble?