Read Matthew 5:21-26I'm finding that with a child, I often have many opportunities to either take the 'high road of Love' or the 'low road of Anger.' I'll try to briefly describe an incident that happened today:
People matter to God. Our relationships are the most important things we have. Jesus put it this way; the most important commandment is Love for God and Love for others. What have you said or done today that has been reflective of that commandment? What has not been reflective of that commandment? What’s it like to be on the other side of you?
We have almost zero food in the house. So, Ellie and I went grocery shopping after a workout at the gym. Grocery shopping is my one time that I usually indulge in a Starbucks latte - today was no different. I love you Pumpkin Spice. Anyhoo, as I'm in the soup aisle looking for Chicken Gumbo, I fail to see that for the five seconds I've turned my attention away from Ellie, she has managed to pull my latte out of the cup holder and is holding it upside down, watching all of the pumkin-y goodness pour out of the cup and onto her, her favorite doll, the grocery cart, and all my groceries. If I had taken the 'low road of anger,' I would have probably gotten pretty upset AT Ellie and even perhaps shed a few tears. (Yes, I'll admit it). The blood pressure would have risen to an unhealthy level and I could have easily lost it in the middle of the grocery store. But today, thank goodness, the grace and love of God was with me and I managed to take it in stride; I even told Ellie it was MY fault for leaving the cup within her reach (I'm sure she appreciated that) and managed to have a laugh or two about it after a nice Hy Vee employee helped me clean up the floor and after I had removed Ellie's pants, shoes, and doll that had all gotten a latte baptism.
I will be the first to admit that many times, though, this is not my instinctual reaction. Sometimes I have a short fuse, and it's very easy to get upset or angry at the situation. In fact, just last week while making dinner, after a pile of stuff had fallen from the pantry, after the second box of cereal had been spilled on the floor, I lost it. I remember yelling, "Why does it have to be so hard!?!" I started crying. Ellie started crying. I'm sure the cat was crying too.
In a split second, we have a choice. Are we going to react with love or with anger? Think back to our discussion a couple weeks ago about bridging the gap between Christians and Muslims - we are again faced with a choice of love or hostility. The more I study God's Word; the more it permeates my very soul -- the more times I will choose love.
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| At least I drank some of the latte before it spilled all over the jeans! |
What a great entry Jill. I know this is a season in your life where you have spent more time in God's word and with other believers than maybe any other time before.
ReplyDeleteI feel the same for myself and I can say honestly I feel a change in the way I approach not just people but everything. I feel like I drive a little differently, I work a little differently, AND I am treating people a little differently.
At lunch today we had someone jump in to our conversation who just happened to "overhear" us and we could have been snooty since it was OUR conversation, but instead we had a friendly conversation with a complete stranger.
P.S. That could just be grunge look on those jeans!
First off, there would NEVER be grunge on a pair of Jill's daughter's jeans. :)
ReplyDeleteSecond, I completely resonate with Jill's post above. The story of children causing messes is one-in-a-million for us so far. And each year we get a little better with our patience. But just today it was an encounter at work. After spending the night in the ER, with Karli so constipated that she was screaming and inconsolable and eventually getting an Xray and enema, we went to bed at 4 am. Praise God that's all it was. But at work today, with very little sleep, it was obviously showing. One guy walked by, said hi, and kept walking. But then he came back and said, "Are you ok?" Rather than explain my circumstances, or tell him I appreciated his concern, I basically blew him off in hopes of getting back to the 100s of emails that awaited me. Really? Were those emails that important? Or was it important to show love to this guy and tell him his concern was appreciated. Obviously, he was concerned enough about me to turn around and ask me about it. Failure. But praise God of his never-ending grace as he gives me many more chances to show love to others. K
Kelli, I love your honesty and feel like that on many occasions. So thankful for God's grace...and Jill u are a great writer... Heres my small but mighty display of love today... I say small bc I didn't think it was a big deal but Scott thought it was worth sharing. Today a coworker and friend was Discussing why she is getting a divorce. She has talked to me many times about this and several times i have remained pretty quiet afraid to share my true feelings. I usually get pretty fired up about divorce but I felt different today. Though it broke my heart to hear her story I listened and even felt the Holy spirit saying "u might not agree but this is a moment to show compassion and love don't judge but just love" and I did. And I made sure to let her know I would be praying for her through this journey and to let me know if she needed anything. Thank you God for guiding me through that discussion reminding me u don't judge me for my failures but love me instead.
ReplyDeletegood job, Ann :) the little things matter too. K
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