A Big-Enough Father

“The only thing I can think of is selling a few things. We could do without the truck, and Grandpa’s secretary desk….” Dad’s voice sounded tired. Rosie stopped her window wiping to listen. There was a scraping of chairs and she could hear the swish of Mom’s mop on the kitchen floor.

“But, Walter, I can cut back on the grocery bill first,” she was saying. “We’ll save where we can before selling; the pantry is stocked, and I can scrimp and save.” Her voice rose and fell with the sound of scrubbing, sounding more and more determined.

Rosie glanced at Daniel who was standing motionless with the duster. They both knew that Dad had hurt his back and couldn’t work, but having him home every day had been fun. Except for yesterday, when the letter had come from Eastwood Construction. Ever since Dad had been writing numbers on paper or sitting in the big chair with his eyes shut. Mom said that Dad had lost his job, and now….

“Did Dad lose his money, too?” Rosie asked, feeling suddenly cold.

“I don’t know.” Daniel’s eyes were wide and he spoke slowly. “When Earl’s dad lost his job they had to move. They didn’t have any money and soon they were poor and—”

“Did they have to sell everything?” Rosie looked around at the couches, book shelf, and her own warm dress.

“I don’t know,” Daniel said, frowning, “but poor people can’t buy things, and they wear old clothes and don’t have friends or anything.” There was a hopeless sound in his voice and Rosie shivered. Slowly she began again to wipe the window, but the cloudy cold sky only seemed to frown in on her.

At the lunch table everyone was unusually quite. When Irene asked if there was any more mayonnaise, Mom shook her head slowly. Dad set down his spoon and said, “Children, with me without work now we especially need all of your help to make the money stretch. We’ll have to do with less, and trust God to provide our needs.” Dad’s voice was calm, but he did not smile. Rosie’s eyes met Daniel’s, and the dreadful coldness came tumbling back. What would happen now?

That afternoon Emma wanted to play with dolls, but Rosie only shook her head. How could she be happy when everything was so dark and gloomy? Even the dolls seemed to say, “What will happen to us?” Rosie turned from the cradle where Ally and Mae lay so quietly and hurried to the bedroom. Her heart felt heavy and sad. Closing the door she sat on the edge of her bed to think.

“What can I do?” she kept saying to herself, and then she remembered. She could pray! Falling on her knees, Rosie began telling Jesus all about it. “And You know, dear Lord, about everything. I remember I should ask You for everything I need, so please help us that we won’t be poor and have to move. Please help Daddy have a job. And I thank You, amen.” It seemed that the heaviness had all flown away, for when Rosie got up she felt all happy and warm inside. “Oh, I just know it,” she said to herself. “God is so big and He will surely take care of everything!” A gleam of sunshine burst through the clouds, and with a laugh Rosie skipped out of the room.

“Mae darling, we just will have to stretch the cereal today,” Rosie said, seating the brown-haired doll next to a wooden crate. “But don’t you worry any, because God will take care of us.” Emma put two plastic bowls and a tiny pitcher on the “table,” then ran to wake her baby.

“Is God like our father?” she asked, after Rosie had said the blessing. “You said, ‘Dear Heavenly Father’ when you thanked Him for the food.”

Rosie stopped feeding her baby doll and looked up in surprise. “I guess He really is,” she said softly, then a new thought came to her. “Do you know Emma? We really have lots of money and everything, because our Father God owns the whole world!”

“And God’s really big,” Emma said solemnly, rocking her dolly.

“Children, dear,” Rosie said, turning to her dolls again, “don’t you worry if we are poor. Father can take care of everything.”

It was a few minutes later, when Rosie went to get a washcloth, that she found Daniel sitting on his bedroom floor. Plink-clank-clank! Rosie stood in the hall and watched him as he shook pennies out of his piggy bank. Clink-clankity-clank!

“What are you doing, Daniel?” she asked, sitting down beside him.

“Counting my money.” His voice was gloomy and hard.

“Why?” Rosie asked in a surprised voice. “Are you going to buy something?”

“No. I’m just seeing if I have enough for—I mean, how much—” Daniel’s voice quavered off in a little moan, “but it isn’t enough. Nobody has enough money!”

“But God does,” Rosie said, cheerfully. “And I know He will take care of us. I’m not afraid anymore, even if we are poor.”

“Poor!” Daniel cried, “You don’t even know how bad it’ll be!” Rosie saw him tremble and remembered how afraid she had felt.

“But Daniel, God is just like our Father; He’s big enough for anything, I just know it. And He loves us just like Daddy, too.”

“How can you be so sure?” Daniel said glumly.

“Because,” Rosie began slowly, “because Jesus made me so happy and—and Daniel, I wished you would believe Him. He can help, and He loves us so much.”

“It doesn’t seem like it,” Daniel said. His eyes looked up and they were very dark and sad. Rosie didn’t know what to say, and her heart sank.

But God was big enough, no matter what Daniel thought. And then she knew what she could do. She would pray that Daniel could be happy and see the sunshine, too. Her Heavenly Father could show him that He was bigger than all those pennies.