look up.

The little girl I nanny just turned one year old. It’s such a fun age because she’s learning how to stand, how to have balance, how to walk.

She’s also learning what to do when she falls and how to get up.

I’ve noticed that when she falls and it’s startling or maybe worrying to her, she looks up at me.

Her eyes ask me about what just happened. Am I okay? they want to know.

I learned a long time ago that kids will mirror your reaction. If you gasp in fear, they will cry. If you coddle them, they will play it safe.

So I don’t gasp. I don’t jump. I don’t ask if she’s okay. I know she is, and I tell her so. “Oops!” I say. “Try again!”

I cheer her on. I offer a helping hand. And she carries on like she has a renewed sense of courage.

It’s shocking to me to recognize how much my response influences her behavior. It’s like I can literally see determination and confidence rise up in her as she tries again, gets up after falling, or takes another step.

I often think, what if I had gasped? What if I jumped at her fall, trying to prevent her bottom from hitting the floor?

I can already see uncertainty in her eyes. She doesn’t need me to tell her to be careful. She needs to know she can do it. And that when she wobbles or falls, she can get up again. That it’s just part of the learning process.

It makes me think about all the things that happen in my life, and how often do I look to God to see what He has to say about it before I react? What if I took a page from a one-year-old and did that more often?

Looking up to God doesn’t make what happens more comfortable or hurt less, but it helps set the tone for how we move forward and what we do next.

Sometimes what’s next is recognizing we can get up again, and we carry on with renewed courage. Sometimes it’s reaching for God and crying into His shoulder.

But He never gasps. He never jumps in surprise. He never wonders if we’re okay—because He knows we are.

He is always encouraging us, singing over us, and speaking life and hope into us.

Every time my girl looks to me for my response, I think about the power of that moment and I’m reminded of how much influence I have on what happens next—and how we all have Someone who does that for us too.

We just have to look up.

The power of God is in you, even on a Thursday.