This post was written back in 2018.
As I write this, I am laying on the couch feeling VERY pregnant. My third child is due any day now, and I am anxiously awaiting her arrival. It is hard to think about anything else these days. I constantly find my mind thinking about going into labor, what it will be like, when is it going to happen, etc… Add in all the physical discomforts, and I am just ready for her arrival!
I was thinking about the idea of being “born again” in Christ. That is the way that it is described in the Bible. We are born again spiritually. We focus so much on what happens after being born again, but there is a lot happening before birth. What does that mean spiritually? Science has yet to explain what exactly it is that triggers labor to start. Sure there are a lot of theories, but most of them come with exceptions. So much of it is still a mystery. While we can have all kinds of assistance and intervention in the pregnancy/labor process, there is still no way to actually control the timing and the experience of birth. Everyone experiences it differently. Every birth has it’s own story. Isn’t that true when we talk about spiritual birth too?
What if we started thinking about those who are not yet born again as still being in the womb? I think that is such a beautiful image. The Bible tells us that God is knitting us together in the womb. Of course it is easy to think of that in the physical realm. I love thinking of my heavenly Father knitting my little girl together in my womb. She is His masterpiece! But for those that aren’t yet saved, it is a beautiful image to think of them in the womb still being knitted together. Each experience, relationship, challenge being used in the development process so that one day they will be ready for labor and then birth. All of that happens in God’s perfect timing. Just like a physical birth, we can’t control it or plan it. We can help the process. The doctors can monitor and intervene as needed, but no one can fully control a birth. No one, but God.
So today, I feel thankful that the Lord is not only working on the beautiful masterpiece that is my daughter, but that she will arrive in His perfect timing. Her birth story will be unique and special to her. And someday, my sweet child will have another birth that will also be in God’s perfect timing. Her physical birth is just the beginning. God’s masterpiece is not complete and he will faithfully keep knitting while she is in the spiritual womb. And I believe that one day all of my children will experience another birth. I will anxiously await that much like I am anxiously awaiting my baby girl today. So excited to see God knitting away, knowing that my children will one day know Jesus.