The last time my wife and I slept in was over fourteen years ago. That’s when we had our first baby. Babies cry A LOT. They cry when they’re hungry, or wet, or dirty, or uncomfortable, or afraid, lonely, gassy, sleepy, etc…. No one has to teach them. It’s what they do.
Babies are born crying. While they may cry for a number of reasons, at it’s fundamental level, it’s a cry for just one thing… nearness. Babies don’t think about it. They come pre-programed to cry.
Why? Because parents are pre-programmed to get up and take care of crying babies.
Our spirits have come pre-programmed to cry also. As the Scripture says, “Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts crying, “Abba, Father”. Without the Spirit of Christ, we complain, boast, argue, grumble, analyze, strategize, criticize, whine… we do anything but cry to God for His nearness. Our “old tapes” lure us into the darkness of self-protection with lies that we are alone and must take care of ourselves. We are determined to be strong, but God wants to be our strength. So God puts the Spirit of His Son in our hearts, calling on His Name.
For all eternity, the Son of God has known nothing but the loving embrace of His Father. He has always enjoyed the perfect security of His Father’s all-power and all-wise care. The Son of God has tapes far older than our “old tapes”. Because we are sons, He’s playing them in our hearts now by His Spirit. We can “piggy back” on our elder brother beyond all our fears and doubts, and let Him carry us into our Heavenly Father’s arms.