The Everlasting Arms

One of the joys my husband, Bob, experienced as a pastor was dedicating babies to the Lord.

My husband dedicating a baby to the Lord

 Just as Mary and Joseph brought the infant Jesus to the Temple to present Him to the Lord (see Luke 2:22), parents in our churches bring their youngsters at an early age to dedicate them to the Lord, promising to raise them "in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." The church agrees to provide spiritual assistance through godly counsel, Christian education, and the fellowship of believers.

When the parents would place their child in Bob's arms for the prayer, the infant would usually rest quietly against his broad chest soothed by the full, resonant tones of his baritone voice.

One Sunday, however, as Bob prayed, the fussing baby began to wail and flail his arms and legs and would not be comforted. Bob just held him securely and kept right on praying. He felt bad for the embarrassed parents and frustrated that he had been unable to comfort the child.

After the service, a godly grandma in our congregation sought him out. "Oh, Pastor, what a beautiful dedication!"

Shocked, my husband listened as she continued, "As you were praying, I thought of how God always holds us in His arms. Sometimes life throws a lot of bad stuff at us and we struggle and fuss and squall. But in spite of that, God keeps on holding us securely in His strong arms."

Dottie Rambo wrote a beautiful song during a time when she was going through hard trials and God reminded her that she was held securely in God's strong arms of love, Sheltered in the Arms of God. (Click title to listen to her story and the song she wrote.) What a blessing this song has been to many! Often it is in the hard things God proves to us who He is and what He can do.

I love the promise God made through Moses in his final farewell to the Children of Israel in Deuteronomy 33:27, 

"The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms."

For more than seventy years, those arms have never failed me. 

When you go through trials and troubles, remember that God's arms are everlasting. They never fail. As someone once wrote, "With God behind you and His arms beneath you, you can face whatever lies ahead." 


Books by AnnaLee Conti (Click here for more information)