God through the eyes of a pregnant woman

Like I do with most events and places before experiencing them, I definitely idealized pregnancy. I knew there would be nausea, but I didn't realize how miserable and pervasive it would be until it happened - and my experience was mild compared to many others'. I knew I wouldn't be able to have alcohol or sushi, but when you look into what you can't eat, drink, inhale, or do while pregnant, the list seems unending (Did you know you shouldn't eat deli meats or lie on your back?).

I also didn't comprehend, until perceiving it in my own body, how much a pregnant woman gives of herself to make room for the new life within her. The baby takes the nutrients he needs from your body, whether or not there are enough left for the proper functioning of your own body. The energy that is needed to support the life of your baby is incredible. As the baby grows, your organs are displaced and squished, and your skin is stretched. Digestion and breathing become difficult. Muscles become tighter than you can imagine.

And yet, I love this tiny human being in a way I haven't ever loved another. Almost everything I do is for his well being, and I can't wait for him to invade my world in a new way through his birth.

I think that this whole experience helps me to understand God in a new way: I've tasted just a fragment of the sacrificial giving of myself that God does for us. And the love for a child being made in my image inside of me gives me a glimpse of God's love for us, His children, made in His image.

" 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' " -Acts 17:28

"See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children." -1 John 3:1

"We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us." -1 John 3:16