Marvelous Grace!

What a weekend! Saturday we finally got the garden all cleared out and plowed under. Our veranda is lined with tomatoes (green and red) and we pulled out a few forgotten carrots and lonely little watermelons. It looks like a lot considering that we haven't gotten all that much from our garden this year (which is ok with me, for my goal was small --just get the thing planted!). Saturday night it was so nice to be exhausted from outdoor work :-).

Sunday we went to church and I was so proud of the children, who sang Colossians 1:15-23 perfectly and sat in church quietly coloring during the sermon. Afterwards we were going to go out to eat as a reward for David, who has mastered tying his shoes (we are so proud of you David!). However, they were having a church cookout at the park and he decided he wanted to go to that instead to celebrate. They had the most delicious brats and desserts and we were all stuffed with food and fellowship by the time we headed home.

Tonight I have been pondering the grace of God afresh. Sometimes as parents we can become convinced that our children depend on us alone. We can become proud of the things we have done well, or we can despair and think, "I've ruined my child! How will I ever fix him?" I am mostly talking about our own flaws that are passed down to our kids despite our efforts to the contrary, and sometimes about mistakes that have been made (consistently, to be sure!). But my despair evaporates when I consider my God and the marvelous grace which he bestows upon ME! To quote an earlier blog entry:

"The grace of God is what can take a soul raised in the muck of this world and transform it from the inside-out. It can take a child raised without any moral guidance or training, living in a chaotic, sin-torn environment, loving the world and everything in it, into a holy child of God - and a devoted parent. It travels through the vehicle of our faith in God and His word. It was poured out in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and it seeps out of His own in the form of thankfulness and righteous living."

The reason we are able to appreciate the grace of God so fully is because we are such flawed creatures. When our flaws begin showing up in our kids, it's almost enough to make a God-fearing parent want to throw in the towel. It really hurts! But I submit to you this thought: Our children are in the hands of Almighty God, and our God, who is mighty to save, is more than big enough to use our flaws and mistakes for His glory. Halleiluia!