“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.” Psalm 19:1-2
“Since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what He has made…” Romans 1:20
Creation speaks daily, pouring forth speech, testifying to the glory and invisible qualities of God: His love, power, and even His attention to detail.
I have gotten a glimpse into His heart for moms, by observing His design.
When our 4th baby was born in 1997, he joined his siblings: a brother who was 4 years old at that time, and twin sisters who were just 22 months. My husband and I were very excited for this addition to our family, but were very surprised to find at his birth, that all was not well.
Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.” Psalm 19:1-2
“Since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what He has made…” Romans 1:20
Creation speaks daily, pouring forth speech, testifying to the glory and invisible qualities of God: His love, power, and even His attention to detail.
I have gotten a glimpse into His heart for moms, by observing His design.
When our 4th baby was born in 1997, he joined his siblings: a brother who was 4 years old at that time, and twin sisters who were just 22 months. My husband and I were very excited for this addition to our family, but were very surprised to find at his birth, that all was not well.
Desmond was born by c-section, as were all his siblings. But he was very ‘floppy’, evidencing no muscle tone whatsoever. When it came time to nurse him, it was a no-go. He was completely lethargic, and unable to latch on. With assistance from the lactation consultant on site, I began to pump milk for him, which was gavage-fed to him (through a tube, down the throat, and into his stomach) in the NICU.
This was all so very overwhelming to both me and my husband. The battery of tests that were done to try to determine a diagnosis resulted in all negative results. Given that, we took him home, along with an electric pump, and continued the pumping and feeding cycles there, hoping that any day, he would “wake up” and begin to function normally.
Breastfeeding for our other 3 children worked very well, even for the twins. I nursed each of them for about a year. I had intended to do the same for our youngest, so I worked diligently with a lactation consultant to administer my milk to Desmond, while preserving the opportunity to nurse him whenever he was able. I figured that even if this took a month of hard work, I would potentially have another 11 months of feeding without the pump.
Feeding with a regular bottle was not an option with his lack of muscle tone. The most efficacious method I had was a medical syringe to drop the milk into his mouth, like a very large medicine dropper. After a few months of exhausting effort, and no advancement in his abilities, I resorted to a specialized bottle that operated much the same way.
This was all so very overwhelming to both me and my husband. The battery of tests that were done to try to determine a diagnosis resulted in all negative results. Given that, we took him home, along with an electric pump, and continued the pumping and feeding cycles there, hoping that any day, he would “wake up” and begin to function normally.
Breastfeeding for our other 3 children worked very well, even for the twins. I nursed each of them for about a year. I had intended to do the same for our youngest, so I worked diligently with a lactation consultant to administer my milk to Desmond, while preserving the opportunity to nurse him whenever he was able. I figured that even if this took a month of hard work, I would potentially have another 11 months of feeding without the pump.
Feeding with a regular bottle was not an option with his lack of muscle tone. The most efficacious method I had was a medical syringe to drop the milk into his mouth, like a very large medicine dropper. After a few months of exhausting effort, and no advancement in his abilities, I resorted to a specialized bottle that operated much the same way.
My husband asked me, if there was any way I could keep going with pumping the milk for Desmond’s first year, would I be willing to do that? He reasoned correctly, and I agreed, that of all our children, this one needed the benefits of breastmilk the most. We worked as a team very well. I was the only one who could pump the milk. But he gladly did his part by taking on extra duties around the house.
It was during the struggle to breastfeed Desmond normally, that I came to really appreciate what went so easily with our first 3 children. I realized that the simple design God created in an infant’s earliest stages of feeding pointed to such a caring Heart in God, the Creator, for the new mom.
Unlike any other time in a mom’s life, she will produce more food because she rested. A well-rested mom produces more milk than an exhausted mom. There will never be another time in a mom’s life when she will be able to say, “While I napped, my body made dinner.”
Breastfeeding requires no preparation, cooking, or clean up. Even getting takeout produces more of a mess than breastfeeding!
A mom cannot multi-task while nursing. She must sit or lie down, and take a break from the laundry, or cleaning. God has built in rest times for a new mom and baby. Genius! And so compassionate.
“What is man (or a mom) that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?”
Psalm 8:4
What a glimpse of some of the invisible qualities of God, His caring and compassionate heart for moms! His creation and design, day after day, pouring forth speech.
My husband and I made it through that difficult year, stronger than ever, and more attuned to God’s faithfulness. When our son turned 3 years old, we finally received a diagnosis for his condition: Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS). It turned out that when he was tested for this as a newborn, the type of test used had a 30% false negative rate, and Desmond was in that 30%. A new and better test a few years later gave us the correct diagnosis. PWS explained everything we saw in his infancy, especially the low muscle tone and inability to feed.
Had we known the profundity of his condition, and that he would not just ‘snap out of it’, as we had hoped, I don’t know if we would have gone to this effort to feed him breastmilk. We will never know.
Breastfeeding requires no preparation, cooking, or clean up. Even getting takeout produces more of a mess than breastfeeding!
A mom cannot multi-task while nursing. She must sit or lie down, and take a break from the laundry, or cleaning. God has built in rest times for a new mom and baby. Genius! And so compassionate.
“What is man (or a mom) that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?”
Psalm 8:4
What a glimpse of some of the invisible qualities of God, His caring and compassionate heart for moms! His creation and design, day after day, pouring forth speech.
My husband and I made it through that difficult year, stronger than ever, and more attuned to God’s faithfulness. When our son turned 3 years old, we finally received a diagnosis for his condition: Prader-Willi Syndrome (PWS). It turned out that when he was tested for this as a newborn, the type of test used had a 30% false negative rate, and Desmond was in that 30%. A new and better test a few years later gave us the correct diagnosis. PWS explained everything we saw in his infancy, especially the low muscle tone and inability to feed.
Had we known the profundity of his condition, and that he would not just ‘snap out of it’, as we had hoped, I don’t know if we would have gone to this effort to feed him breastmilk. We will never know.
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My writing about this is in no way intended to produce shame, or cast judgement on anyone who does not breastfeed, whether by choice, or due to an incapability on the part of mom or baby. Motherhood is so much bigger than that. It’s bigger than natural childbirth too. (I’ve had all my children via c-section!) It is a mistake to hang success or failure in motherhood on either of these things. If only it were that simple!
I want more than anything to know God, and to see His handiwork in creation. There is a bounty of revelation awaiting our discovery as we observe all that He has made. His creation and design pour forth speech, day after day, telling us of God’s invisible qualities. In this case, it is saying that God has a heart for moms. He sees you. He knows the job is a difficult one, and He cares.
I want more than anything to know God, and to see His handiwork in creation. There is a bounty of revelation awaiting our discovery as we observe all that He has made. His creation and design pour forth speech, day after day, telling us of God’s invisible qualities. In this case, it is saying that God has a heart for moms. He sees you. He knows the job is a difficult one, and He cares.
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