I always feel like Somebody's watching me

"the God Who Sees"

Genesis 16:13

In the Bible study I attend, there's a children's program, which means my Amazing Boy goes with me, and learns while I'm learning.  Although, being in Junior High, he'd probably protest the phrase "Children's Program"...

And a few times a year, the different grades share something with the women of the study.  They come in after we're done in our small groups, and before we come together for our lecture.  They might sing a song for us, or share a project they've been working on.  And twice a year ~ at Christmas and at the end of the study year in May, they all get together and sing a few songs for us.  The moms all love it.

The kids, not so much...

The little ones just want their mommies, so as soon as they see them in the audience, it's hard to even get them to stay on stage and do whatever it is they're supposed to do.   The older kids cooperate, but most of them aren't too keen on being up in front of the moms.  Most people don't like that much attention, right?

Well, when my Amazing Boy was little, I would try to give him courage about those times, by telling him that all the other moms were looking at their own children, so I was the only one who was looking at him.

That worked for a few years.

Then he got to an age where it occurred to him that not all of those women in the audience had children in the program.  But I told him that anyone who didn't have a child in the program was looking at the youngest ones, the two-year-olds, because they are the cutest, as a rule, and the most likely to do something silly and fun to watch, so really I was the only one who was looking at him.

That worked for a few years.

Then, last year, my mother joined the Bible study, and he said to me, "Mom, I don't care what you say, you're not going to be the only one looking at me; Grandma's going to be looking at me, too."

Well, he had me on that....

He's right, and he was all along, of course.  He could never be positive that I would be the only one looking at him.   There is pressure of being watched, whether on stage or crossing the street, and very few people enjoy that feeling.  But there are a lot of people in the world.  So it figures some of them are gonna be looking at one another...

The important thing to remember though, is that the only One we should care about, is God.  As hard as it might be sometimes, we need only concern ourselves with an audience of One.  He's watching with love, and compassion, and understanding, and He is the only One qualified to judge.  He knows our hearts, He forgives our mistakes, and He loves our efforts.  Like me with my Amazing Boy, only better!  :)

~ "The ways of man 

are before the eyes of the Lord, 

and He ponders all his paths" ~

Proverbs 5:21