A Bathtub and Rapper

One of the unique things about our apartment is the fact that it is an open bathroom. What I mean by this is: there is no bathtub or any kind of division to keep the shower water from splashing everywhere (i.e. the toilet). Here’s a picture of our bathroom:

Our little open bathroom.

Now, Jen and I have pretty much adjusted to this bathroom, but for Haddon it’s quite an adventure. He doesn’t like the shower head and thus hates taking showers. Baths, on the other hand, are his guilty pleasure. He loves just sitting and splashing the water (like all toddlers). So in order to get him clean, we bought a large basin for him to sit and bathe in.

This large basin was more than enough back in April, but it was apparent that H was not going to be contained by it. So pretty soon he started looking like this:

There were a few nights when I would be sitting in the bathroom during H’s bath and  thinking, “Man, what kind of father can’t even find an apartment that has a working bathtub?” Or, “H is trying really hard to submerge his body underwater but he can’t. This is pathetic.” As superficial and ridiculous as this sounds, it’s an honest confession from a father that wants his child to have the best.

But another thing I remember doing was rapping. It was a simple rap. There was no on-your knee, dark room type of rap. It was a simple request lifted from a genuine heart. Paraphrasing, it went something like this: “I know you brought us here for a reason. And even though right now I feel inadequate as a father, I know you’ll provide a solution to this superficial problem. A bathtub would be nice, but I’d rather follow you and trust H will do the same. A—-Dude, don’t drink the water!”

A couple of days would go by after that request and I’m in the nursery at ch talking to another dad. We were just sharing how our week was and I shared with him my foolish thought about a bathtub for H. He understood and even shared a similar sentiment saying he actually received a portable bathtub. I didn’t even know those things existed. But then he offered his bathtub to our family since he has no need for it anymore.

Of course I took the bathtub and we’ve been pretty happy with it. H is definitely enjoying his baths more.

But as much as the bathtub made our lives a bit easier, it doesn’t take the main focus for this blog post.

One of the main purposes of rapper is to tie evidences of his grace back to him. Too often the attention is on the gift and not on the giver of that gift. Rapper connects the dots for us to see the ways he showers us with his mercies and grace. But I wonder how often we simply acknowledge this connection contrasted with actually having a genuine gratitude for him and a deepening of faith and trust in him. It’s one thing to acknowledge, it’s another thing to actually believe.

As much as I’m grateful for this bathtub, I’m more grateful to have tangible evidence of him answering the most superficial of rappers. It feeds me to trust that my other rappers are being heard and will be answered. It spurs me on to rap without ceasing as Paul writes back in 1 Thess. 5:17.

One of the benefits of moving to a different country with a different culture, is seeing your life slow down . You can take the time to make these connections and have time to cultivate a genuine heart of gratitude and deepening faith to trust in him more.