It was one of THOSE moments.
All I could do was yell when I saw the “artwork” my daughter, Jayme, had added to our bedroom décor. Mad was an understatement when seeing the one thousandth installment in her series of works entitled Scribbles, this one in permanent marker. I was so angry I had to walk away.
As much as I wish my response never happened, it was what came next that turned a bad situation into something extraordinary.
My husband, Paul, swooped into action. In a calm and quiet voice, he reminded Jayme she did not have permission to draw on the walls and that she had made a wrong choice. Then he went to work cleaning up the mess of black marks from the wall, which took a little doing and a visit to Goggle. In the end, Paul was able to remove all the evidence.
I needed to redirect my attention.
Here’s the place in the tale where I could confess impatience and lack of self-control, pointing your attention to me. I could fill a few paragraphs with words on the wisdom of keeping your head when things go sideways while parenting, and you’ve had one of THOSE moments. I could probably even share some good verses to back me up.
But this story is not about me. It was about God and the moment he allowed me to see. I witnessed something so beautiful as I watched my husband practice God’s love toward our daughter as he disciplined her with such gentleness. His way resulted in a remorseful child who picked up a paper towel and worked alongside daddy to do what she could to make it right.
God had something to show me.
God is very good at teaching his lessons, and this one was loud and clear. Just as my husband had treated Jayme with gentleness, I received the same from God. I want you to notice that God’s gentleness in no way excused my actions, but neither did he scold me. Instead, he showed me a more excellent way. He showed me what it is like to be gentle and the beauty of the action by watching Paul respond to Jayme. It’s a moment that I will hold in my heart forever.
Love is large and incredibly patient. Love is gentle and consistently kind to all.
1 Corinthians 13:4 The Passion Translation
Oh, what an amazing teachable moment God granted you, Patty! I see myself reacting just as you did because I know I could have. God’s graciousness is so vast, we need to remember to look to Him first before we react in our frail and human weaknesses.
Blessings, and thanks for this beautiful story today.
It’s tough some days to remember to look to God first, but with practice I hope to be a little better about it each day. Thanks for stopping by!
Beautiful.
Thanks.
I need to remember this with adult “children,” too! Thanks, Patty!
God’s way is always best. Thanks, Mary, for stopping by.
Such a great lesson on God’s patience and love toward us.
It is. Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment.