A-tisket a-tasket
A green and yellow basket
I wrote a letter to my love
And on the way, I dropped it,
I dropped it, I dropped it,
And on the way, I dropped it.
A little boy he picked it up
And put it in his pocket.
Let’s set the scene. You have been thinking about your love all day. You decide to write a letter to express your feelings. You write about your deep love and describe your future together. You finish and go to deliver the letter. Unfortunately, you lose the letter on the way. You have two choices: go back home or continue the walk.
You return home frustrated and sad that the letter was lost. You wanted everything to be perfect. In this situation, God is the person we love. We’ve written praises and thank yous but have decided that without the letter, we won’t be perfect enough to see our love. God doesn’t need us to be perfect. God wants us to come into His presence just the way we are. God knows we love Him, and He returns this love to us. Even on our worst days, God loves us and wants us to come into His presence.
Imagine you’ve planned an evening out with friends. You’ve anticipated this night for weeks. You are excited to reconnect with your friends and enjoy adult time—the morning of the planned outing, your baby sneezes and coughs. As the day continues, the coughing worsens, and the baby has a fever by that evening. You have to cancel your plans. A wave of anger and frustration hits you. You know it’s not the baby’s fault, but did they smell your need to leave the house? In their sickness, they want you to hold them tighter. They refuse to let you put them down. Not only is your evening canceled, you can’t do anything else.
In this time of frustration and imperfection, we must turn to God. Allow the love of God to overwhelm you so that you, in turn, give that love to your baby. Allow God to fill your empty cup and ease your frustrations. Allow God to change your perspective on what is happening so you can become a better person while caring for your child. I know this is challenging, and sometimes you don’t feel instant comfort and love. In the midst of it all, you can recite
Psalm 88:9 (The Message Bible)
I’m caught in a maze and can’t find my way out,
blinded by tears of pain and frustration.
I call to you, God; all day I call.
I wring my hands, I plead for help.
You can also pray the following prayer:
Additional ways of dealing with frustration include:
- Using breathing exercises
- Exercising
- Telling your frustrations to a trusted friend
- Writing in a journal
A more extensive list of ways to cope with frustration can be found on Mental Heath America.
Remember, we all get frustrated at times. It is what you do next that is important.
If you have enjoyed reading this post. You can find more nursery rhymes and devotionals in my book ‘Devotions from the Nursery’.
Additional motivation can be found in the blog post ’50 Brilliant Quotes for Parents When You Feel Tired’
Image by pch.vector on Freepik
Image by wayhomestudio on Freepik