Romans 3:23-24
All of us have sinned and fallen
short of God’s glory. But God treats us much better than we deserve, and
because of Christ Jesus, he freely accepts us and sets us free from our
sins.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
I
promised the children a surprise after church if they would be really
good and eat a good lunch. And they all three did exactly that. So I
told them that we would go swimming at the community Aquatic Center. We
loaded our gear and headed for the pool. The children were very good
as we changed into our swimsuits. We had a wonderful swim for an
hour…every child was happy and well-behaved. They got out of the pool
afterward like little soldiers and politely took a seat as I dried them
and wrapped them in towels.
I had promised that when we got
back into the car, each child who had behaved nicely would get a
Lifesaver®. All three children were excited about this sweet treat.
And then “the wheels fell off the bus.” As we headed for the dressing
room to change into our clothes, Zola ran – all the way down the pool
deck to the dressing room door. Despite my calling to her to stop, she
continued. So I told her, “No Lifesaver®.” Of course, she cried…and
buried her little head in her hands. And the boys were quick to chime
in…”We still get Lifesavers®…right?” “If you are good,” I told them. “Oh, we’re going to be good!” they both promised. And they were…until we left the building.
Nathan
was our “line leader,” and I told him to stop at the yellow stripe at
the end of the sidewalk. He took off running and ran right into the
street. Thankfully, the parking lot was virtually empty and there were
no cars – and I knew this before we ever left the front door. Still, he
had disobeyed. I called to him to return and he continued running.
When he did turn around and come to me, I told him it was too late…no
Lifesaver® for him, either. I will tell you, it is terribly hard to
give one child candy and watch the other two cry…even when you know it
is for their own good. I told the children that “this hurts my heart.”
And it really did!
Timothy asked, “Are you mad at me?” I told him no…I was not mad at any of
them…but I was disappointed that two had chosen to misbehave after we
had experienced such a wonderful afternoon. I knew that all three
children were tired and ready for naps, but that was no excuse. Nathan
said through tears, “I want to go take a nap so I can mind better
tomorrow!” I almost melted…but he still didn’t get any candy.
Let
me make this perfectly clear…I am NOT God – nor do I dare to compare
myself to Him in any way. But I do love these children like they were
my own. And when they make a mistake and misbehave, it breaks my
heart. In any given hour, each one of the three of them can have a
misstep. None of them are perfect…and neither are you and I. We are
all capable of sin, because we are human. The only “person” to ever live
in the flesh who is perfect is Jesus Christ…and we simply cannot and
will not ever be Him.
But we can strive to be more like Jesus.
We can work hard to please God…to behave nicely so that we get the
“Lifesaver® blessings” and more that He so wants to give us each and
every day. We all fall short of God’s glory and expectations…but we
must keep on trying to “mind better tomorrow,” just like this sweet
little three-year-old.
I learn lessons from these children every
day. And this time, I am reminded that I serve a God of second, third,
fourth and even hundredth chances…and I am humbled. I fall short, just
as you do…but God is there to pick me up and restore me when I
acknowledge my faults and humbly strive to do better. Have you felt
God’s mercy and compassion over your own mistakes? Have you committed
to doing your best for Him in the future? Will this be the day that you
make that promise? Don’t you think it should be?
©2015 Debbie Robus
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