I'll Do It!

Coralyn has always been an independent little thing, wanting to do things all by herself, confident that she doesn't need any help. Recently, though, she has been determined more than ever to grow up and be a big girl and do everything by herself. Thus, "I'll do it!" is quite the common phrase in our house these days!

From climbing up onto her chair for a snack or meal to somehow getting in her carseat (and of course at least attempting to buckle herself in) to getting dressed in the mornings to putting her shoes on before we go outside, Coralyn assures me, "I'll do it!"

I usually try to stand by and let her do whatever it is on her own, offering my assistance only if she truly needs me. I want her to be independent, to learn how to do things on her own, to not look to me for help with every single little thing. But at the same time, it's hard for me to let go and allow her this independence, for several reasons...I can get it done a lot faster, she might not do it right or the way I would have done, she could make a mess or get hurt in the process.

This morning, however, I knew getting dressed was not going to put my daughter in mortal danger, so I sat back and let her put on her shirt, panties, and jeans by herself. It was quite a comical site, and it felt good to laugh (even if at my own daughter's expense). She got the shirt on, but had one arm through the neck hole. With just a little assistance putting her feet in the correct leg holes, she got the panties on, but pulling them up was somewhat challenging (and caused me the most internal giggles). The same was true of the jeans, as she tried so hard to lean back and pull them up over her little bottom. Thankfully, she let me put her socks on, as I'm not sure how that would have looked.

As I was sitting there watching Coralyn struggle to get her panties, and then jeans, on and chuckling to myself about how silly she looked, I wondered if God does the same thing as He watches us attempt to do things on our own. They can be the simplest of things, like getting dressed, but our efforts probably seem so silly to Him, especially since He could do it so much faster and with no problem whatsoever. Yet, He does sit back and let us try on our own. He gives us the chance to grow up. Yet, like I am with Coralyn, He is right there by our side to offer His assistance should we truly need it or to protect us if we put ourselves in harm's way as we adamantly insist, "I'll do it!"

I also wonder how many times we shout, "I'll do it!" and try to get things done on our own, in our own strength and wisdom, with our own resources and abilities, when we really do need help. How often do we waste time struggling, and looking ridiculous in the process, when we could just ask God to help us out, and He would gladly reach out to assist us with whatever problem we may be facing?

Oh, Lord, may I learn to admit my utter need for You, my total dependence on You. Forgive me for insisting that "I'll do it," when I truly need Your help. Thank You for Your patience with me, and for always being right by my side to help me out, even if I don't ask or wrongly think I can get by on my own. Thank You for being the best Father ever, and for teaching me how to be a better parent to my own daughter.