Since Ava was a wee babe Children of the Heavenly Father has been one of our favorite rocking songs. Over that past month she has memorized the hymn and is often heard singing it throughout our house. More recently Ava has begun interupting our evening singing with questions: “What’s slumber mean?” “What’s a defwender?” “What’s foe-man, Mama?” What is a two-year-old’s foe man?

Last night Ava’s foe man came in the form of a fever. As her temperature approached 102 degrees it brought on chills and dismissed all thoughts of sleeping. In the early hours of this morning I held her weary, hot body and began singing through hymns and lullabies. By the time I came to Children of the Heavenly Father, she was already heavy with sleep, eyelids quiet and breathing slowly. As I started singing her favorite hymn, Ava’s little lips began mouthing the words. Her limbs and lids remained peaceful as her quiet voice joined mine.

Together we sang about her Father who tends and nourishes her, who never slumbers and who gathers her in his bosom. I finished each verse by praying that God would be her defender, would spare her from evil and that she would flourish in his mighty arms. Ava remained nestled in my embrace as I whispered amen, swept her damp hair off her brow, and slowly restored her slumbering self to her bed. The tranquility that had eluded her all through the night had finally come.

Praise the Lord in joyful numbers for the privilege of being children of the heavenly Father.