Do you see how the lamb is gazing so trustingly at Jesus and how lovingly Jesus holds and cares for the little one? We have an art print in our bedroom that has often aroused a prayer in me that I will trust Jesus so freely and fully.
Even though we have had this picture for years, and various aspects of it have ministered to me, something else struck home a few weeks ago. The sheep next to Jesus is also gazing so trustingly at Jesus. Perhaps it is her lamb He is holding. Another prayer bubbled up in my heart. Lord Jesus, please help me to trust You also for my children and grandchildren. Help me to truly leave them in Your hands of love and mercy.
It’s not that I haven’t prayed something like this before, but the meaning I saw in the picture captured my heart in a deeper way.
You see, sometimes I forget God is God. I forget His character of love, compassion, mercy, and power. I forget He reigns over all the earth, over every single human being. Not one hurt, heartache, or horror escapes His notice. It may not feel like it sometimes, but He is still in control on this earth. He is still in control of our loved ones’ hearts. He is still in control over every hurting soul.
“God is God. He sees and hears
all our troubles, all our tears.
Soul, forget not, in your pains,
God over all forever reigns.”
~ Charles Spurgeon
God knows all the burdens and messes in our hearts and our lives. Every single one. Not one tear escapes His notice. He cares so deeply that His loving, compassionate heart cries tears with us.
He can and will take every tangled, broken thread in our hearts, lives, families, nation, and world and make a beautiful design that glorifies Himself and benefits us.
Thank You, God, for all Your goodness and faithful care over us, even when we resist Your ways and want our own way. Please help us to unload all our burdens and messes into Your powerful, ever-capable, merciful hands. Help us to trust You with the bigger picture that You have in mind. To believe Your plans are always for our greater good. Please help us to trust You with our families and friends, our nation, and every hurting, lonely heart in this whole wide world. It’s so hard, Lord, when You don’t move the mountains we long for You to move, but please help us to trust You no matter what. Please help us to rest in Your plan. Help us to believe that even when we can’t see You or feel You, You are still here with us and for us. You will never abandon us! May we cling to You and Your tender love!
“The Lord is my Shepherd;
I have all that I need.”
Psalm 23:1 NLT“Don’t be anxious about things; instead, pray.
Pray about everything.
He longs to hear your requests,
so talk to God about your needs and
be thankful for what has come.
And know that the peace of God
(a peace that is beyond any
and all of our human understanding)
will stand watch over your hearts
and minds in Jesus, the Anointed One.”
Philippians 4:6-7 Voice“For I know the plans I have for you,”
says the Eternal,
“plans for peace, not evil,
to give you a future and hope
— never forget that.”
Jeremiah 29:11 Voice
“Trust In You”
by Lauren Daigle
Freed to Fly 
Having that photo in your place of rest Trudy is so fitting, and I can see how it can remind you of all that God is-peace, love, and joy. I loved the prayer you wrote here. Trusting His loving ways with all, and trusting that He will guide us in how to be loving to ourselves and ALL-this total surrender-is such a loving thing for Him to do for us! I often forget that He just wants to take care of me and move my mountains for me, if I just let Him by letting Him love me fully.
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Thank you, Lynn. Yes, the photo has given me peaceful reflections at different times in my life. I should remember it more often though… I so know what you mean when you say you often forget that God just wants to take care of us and move our mountains for us. Oh, for that total surrender to allow Him to love us fully! And to lean into His plan for us. I have found that sometimes He chooses not to move the mountains, so we will depend more on Him. May we together let Him love us, care for us, and guide us!
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All I can say is WOW! What a touching and profound post. How blessed to see the portrait of Jesus as our shepherd lovingly caring for his sheep, his children. As I read the scriptures, such an overwhelming joy and peace surrounded me as tears fell because they are the verses that I hold most dear to my heart.
Thank you for sharing the heart of God Trudy. I pray that God would continue to inspire you to speak His precious heart to the lonely, the destitute, the lost and the broken-hearted!
God Bless you!
In His Love,
Melissa
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Thank you for your encouragement, Melissa. It’s my heart’s desire to glorify God and to point hurting souls to hope, healing, and freedom in Jesus. I’m so glad your heart is touched and the verses flooded peace and joy into your heart. You have been through an incredibly difficult time. Never forget how special you are to God! Keep on using your voice for Him! May He help us to trust His plan for us is never to harm us but is always to prosper us!
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That’s what it’s all about. Let us always keep our eyes fixed on the prize, the heavenly reward as Paul wrote so eloquently. We are called to be the peacemakers, we are called to love and be the salt and light to a world in need. I have never felt more alive, more determined and more on fire for God. I can’t wait to see, read and hear all about what God is going to do not just in our lives but in the lives of those who haven’t experienced a Godly encounter.
May we hold fast and continue to be the voice to the world!
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Amen! ❤️
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This is such a beautiful reminder of God’s love and care for us- that he sees it all and he cares about it all. I love your insights about the picture and the look of trust on the faces of both the lamb and the sheep. I love your prayer that we would trust God in the same way. The Lauren Daigle song came to mind as I read your post before I scrolled down and saw it- such a great song.
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Thank you, Lesley. I think I may have shared that song before, but it’s the one that came to mind while I was writing this. So I stopped and listened to it and was again so encouraged by it. May we gain an ever deeper trust of God’s love and care for us!
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Amen, Trudy! A good reminder that He loves our prodigals even more than we do. We can trust Him for their lives. Have a blessed week, my friend.
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“He loves the prodigals even more than we do.” Amen. Thank you for this encouraging reminder, June. we truly can trust Him with their lives. May we rest in His powerful love and willingness to change hearts and lives!
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Dear Trudy, I grew up looking at that picture–it was on the hand-held fans that our church used (50 years ago) during the summer months! I always thought of the verse from Isaiah, that He gathers the young ones and holds them close to His heart. But I never remember seeing the sheep nearby looking up also. Your thoughts brought such encouragement to me today, as we pray for our young ones: Jesus wants to gather each one of them close to His heart. And the poem by Spurgeon is so good to keep in mind also. To rest, knowing that He forever reigns, even over all our pains, is such a beautiful truth. Thank you for sharing these precious thoughts today! Hugs and Blessings to you, my friend! xoxo
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Wow! I never heard of that painting being on fans before, Bettie. Such a beautiful truth that He gathers the young ones and holds them close to His heart. Isn’t it something how we can look at a photo or read a verse so many times, but suddenly we see some other lesson or truth in it? God has such a bottomless well of truths to teach to our hearts. May we rest in the arms of our Savior, knowing He forever reigns, even over all our pains!
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This was the picture on my childhood Bible. It’s forever etched on my heart. You’ve brought good memories to me just now, friend.
I’m appreciative …
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Oh, I’m so glad this brought good memories to your heart, Linda. What a beautiful photo to have on your childhood Bible. Such a comforting reminder to a child’s heart. May we daily have a childlike trust in Jesus who knows our every need!
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I might have to read this every day. I had PT this morning….always both physically and mentally challenging. So glad you left a comment TODAY. It lead me to this post.
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I’m so sorry for what you have to go through, Anita. I’m grateful God has given you encouragement after such a challenging PT. He always has the best timing, doesn’t He? I daily need to remind myself of God’s faithful love and care over us, too. Sometimes our eyes can get so clouded with the troubles we’re dealing with. May God daily lift up our weary hearts and drooping eyes to see how He’s got us in the palm of His loving hand!
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What a lovely picture of our compassionate and loving God. It brings me comfort to look at it because you can see the depth of how much God cares in the picture. Your words speak such truth today. Your honesty in telling us that sometimes you forget God is God hit home with me. How many times am I in the same place?
Thank you for the beauty of your words and the willingness to share your heart.
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Thank you for your kind words, Mary. I’m so grateful this brought you comfort today. Yes, we can see “the depth of how much God cares” in the picture. The artist really captures His compassion, doesn’t he? It’s hard to remember God is God sometimes, isn’t it? I know I am sometimes a I-need-to-fix-it person, but bit by bit God is helping me to trust His plan and the way and time He chooses to carry it out. May we daily relax and rest in His arms of faithful and tender loving care for us!
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Trudy,
What a hope-filled and tender post. Thank you 🙂 for sharing your insights. Praying God continues to bless you and your loved ones as we trust in His care for us.
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Thank you, Dolly. Jesus is so tender and compassionate, isn’t He? Even when we forget it. May God continues to bless you and your loved ones as well! May we daily trust in His tender care for us!
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Beautiful, my friend. Thank you for all of this–the song, the Spurgeon quote, the verses, the observation about the sheep–all of it. Hugs to you!
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Thank you, Lois. I’m glad all of it ministered to your heart. 🙂 Hugs back to you! May we daily cling to Jesus and trust Him with our all!
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Trudy, your post here today brought tears to my eyes. Yes, we too often forget that God is large and in charge, and that no matter what troubles or heartaches we face today, He is there to offer comfort and hope when we trust in Him as fully as that little lamb Jesus is cradling in His arms in this touching photo.
Blessings to you!
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I’m so glad this touched your heart, Martha. We so easily forget God has all things in control, don’t we? Like you said, that’s He’s large and in charge. Blessings to you, too! May we have a childlike trust in Jesus and His tender loving care over us even when we feel trampled by troubles!
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Hi Trudy! I wanted to call you to tell you how special this post was to me this morning, but I do not have your phone number. The picture of the Good Shepherd, Jesus that you shared caught my attentions because our lesson in BSF last week was on John 10. This morning I was at Jenny & Terry’s house for my first day of babysitting their 12 week old son, Theo. I had asked a couple of friends to pray for me, because I want to do it well, and I was a little nervous to take on the responsibility. She is returning to teaching Kindergarten after he maternity leave, and is breastfeeding. I will be doing this 2 days a week, and her friend is doing 2 days a week, an Terry will be at home Daddy on Fridays. Your words about the sheep looking at Jesus, who was holding her lamb were words of God to me! I just smiled and praised Jesus for this wonderful direct answer to prayers, and I felt “held” and ready for the task. Thanks, Trudy for your encouragement, and for sharing your testimony so movingly! I was truly blessed. I would like to connect with you by phone, so call me! I work tomorrow through Fri., but will be home by about 3:30. Love, Wilma
Wilma DeRidder
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Hi Wilma! My heart rejoices that God used what He encouraged me with to also encourage your heart concerning taking care of your grandchild. Yes! Praise Jesus for His answer to your prayer. 🙂 I know what a loving grandma you are, and your little grandson is blessed to have you. But I can see where the responsibility would be scary. May God help us to trust in His all-sufficient grace and to entrust our children and grandchildren to Him!
P.S. I do have your number and I will try to call you yet this week. I hope you don’t mind, but I deleted the phone number you gave here for the sake of your privacy. I was worried that phone scammers might see it.
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Trudy, this post caught me at just the right moment. One of my favorite verses is Philippians 4:6-7. Literally AS I was beginning to read it, I was thinking about an uncertain situation with one of my kiddos. I was reminded to pray. To not be anxious. To trust God. He’s got this situation. I need to rest in that.
And I love your insights into this picture. I need to remember He reigns over all the universe, and that He still SEES me. And my boy.
Thanks, friend.
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Oh wow, Jeanne. This brings tears to my eyes. God always has perfect timing, doesn’t He? I’m so sorry about the uncertain situation with one of your kids. Sometimes our hearts can get so heavy over our loved ones, and we can get so anxious, right? But yes, God’s got this situation, too! Yes, God SEES you and your boy. He knows your every heartache. May we trust God reigns over all and entrust ourselves and our loved ones into His loving, powerful hands that can move mountains!
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Hi Trudy,
I love everything about this post, including the sweet image of the robins at the end! I never noticed the lamb was gazing at Jesus either, until you pointed it out. {How did I miss that?}
Praying for your grandchildren in the way you do is such a beautiful gift to them! The legacy of a mother and grandmother who prays so earnestly with all her heart is priceless and will be felt for generations to come. And oh — I love that Lauren Daigle song too! xoxox
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Thank you for your kind-hearted words, Valerie. My kids and grandkids often weigh heavy on my heart. Time and again I have to remember to entrust them into God’s tender loving care. I know it’s hard sometimes for you to be single without children, but I firmly believe you bloom where God has planted you. You are such a beautiful gift to your niece and nephew. They are so blessed to have such a loving, nurturing, and praying aunt!
I have to ask myself the same question when I notice something important in a picture like this or in a Bible verse. How did I miss that?! God leads us ever deeper into a knowledge of His character and His love, and He knows just the right time to reveal something new to us. Isn’t it something how His Word always seems to be filled with new things as He reveals more and more to us? May God continue to show us ever more deeply of His unconditional love, boundless grace, and unfailing compassion!
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Trudy, the lovely Good Shepherd image of Jesus reminded me of my brief time at Sunday School as a small girl. We were sent there by our non-believing parents to give them a break more than anything, but I loved it, especially the singing and collecting stamps (similar to the image above) to stick into a book! And I firmly believe the first seeds of faith were sown in me during those days. Trust is hard at times, isn’t it? Sometimes we do forget how all-encompassing, compassionate and loving God is toward us in His tender care, a love that leaves nothing out and listens to every heart cry and fallen tear. Thank you for this precious reminder, including the sweet robin message, which inspired me to click over to the site it came from. I also love your prayer, the poetry quote, Bible verses and song! Blessings and hugs to you, dear friend. xox
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What a wonder that God planted the first seeds of faith in such a short time in Sunday School, Joy. I’m so glad you have that memory, but I’m so sorry you didn’t always feel wanted by your parents. Yes, trust can be so hard. It’s a daily struggle for me, and I know it can be hard for you, too. The betrayal of trust as a child can make it even harder, I think. God is so patient with us though, isn’t He? No matter how often we forget how much He cares for us. I’m so glad this was a precious reminder for you. May we let go and allow ourselves to rest in Jesus and His compassionate love!
I’m glad you checked out Little Birdie Blessings. Abby doesn’t require a link back to her, but I believe it necessary to give her credit. Her images can be so encouraging. This one came out just when I was writing this post. 🙂 I love it!
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Hi Trudy! Isn’t it something how a picture can become so familiar, and yet always have something else to give? I think I would have missed the mama sheep looking at Jesus too. I love how you decided to pray for your children and grands because of that loving stare.
God is God. Yes. Steve Curtis Chapman has a song that goes ‘God is God and I am not’, and I’ve always loved that.
I pray that you and I allow God to be God, knowing that he will carry us tenderly always.
Blessings,
Ceil
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Thank you so much for sharing that song, Ceil. I hadn’t heard it before, and it really pulls at my heartstrings. Yes! God is God and I am not! I have to remember that. I pray with you that we will allow God to be God, knowing He will always carry us tenderly! Amen!
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Hi Trudy- This is so beautiful- I love these thoughts and the picture of Jesus carrying us and our children! It is so hard to trust Him sometimes, and I find myself wanting to be in control so things feel safer. Learning that he is safe and completely trust worthy! and that His hands are the safest place to be. Thanks for these thoughts- That is one of my favorite songs too!! with much love
Susie
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Thank you, Susie. I know the feeling about wanting to be in control so things feel safer. I am slowly learning, too, how safe and trustworthy He is. As you say, the safest place to be. Yes, isn’t that song inspiring? It always moves me, no matter how many times I hear it. May we trust Him even when He doesn’t move the mountains and part the waters as we want Him to! May we rest in the truth that His ways are always higher!
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So encouraging! Thank you so much for sharing!
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Thank you, Barbie. I’m so glad you were encouraged! May we rest in His safe and loving arms!
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Great prayer, and I love that song! 🙂
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Thank you, Ruth. I’m glad the prayer is meaningful to your heart. Yes, isn’t that song just so inspiring and comforting? May we trust in God and His plan for us!
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