Paperclip

 Pray in His Strength*

Last night Isaac was trying to go to sleep. He came out from his room & said “paperclip.” 

One word. 

Paperclip. 

Very strange. 

I said “show me.” 

He then shifted his 193 lb body and lifted his foot to me. 

When I looked closely, one of his toe nails needed to be clipped. 

Seems small, but this is a big deal. Anything out of place, a scab, a blister, a nail that is chipping…a tag on clothes…these things really bother him. 

He even pulled off a whole toe nail before. Broke my heart! 

For him to show me that his toe nail was bothering him and to say verbally “paper clip” was his way of saying:

 “Mom, I know I can come to you for anything. I know it’s bed time & you are going to tell me for the 5th time to go to sleep. But this is different.   I don’t have the ability to clip my own nails. But you do! Please help me. I promise once this toe issue is settled I’ll feel better, calm, soothed & I can then go to sleep.”

This morning….thinking on this…I realized Isaac saying “paperclip” is like our fumbling over our words in prayer. 

We go to God with groanings. We ask without really knowing what our needs are. Yet in faithful trust we pray anyway ….. we know full well our Gracious Caregiver God, our Abba Father will translate our toddler babble-prayers into eloquence. Even sighs are prayers. Even tears are prayers. He hears it all, sees it all & doesn’t say “go back to bed!” He settles us. He helps us! 

What an amazing God we serve! 

May we all be encouraged by Isaac today to ask for help & pray in the strength of the Holy Spirit. 

“Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words”

Romans 8:26