Our Messes, His Grace

Everyday our little guy dumps his food on the wrong side of the sink. Trying to keep up with his big sisters, but not quite understanding the way dishes work at just three-years-old.

Every day, I walk over to the kitchen sink, expecting the same little mess to be waiting for me. And every day, I sigh the same words, “Oh, buddy!” As I clean up His mess once again.

Today was no exception. Other than today I wasn't at the sink alone.

There God was, waiting with a huge smile. Standing right there next to the sink, as we had a little chuckle together and sighed, “Oh, buddy!”

And then He nudged me.I knew exactly what He was going to say before He ever whispered a word.

“It takes time, My Child. He will learn. Each of my children are a constant work-in-progress. Even you. We’ve probably lost count of the amount of messes we’ve cleaned up together, huh? But, just as you will always be there as his mother to teach Him and clean up, so too will I as your Father. Forever there to meet you in your messes and clean them up.

With My grace. With My love. With My mercy. And with My forgiveness.”

But the thing is, this isn't the first time we've met like this.

My missteps with His forgiveness. My mess with His grace.

It's a daily occurrence, really. Because, not a day goes by without life's chaos, and not a moment goes by that His grace doesn't find me in the middle of it all.

Sometimes, the wreckage feels so overwhelming and consuming, that I want nothing more than to hide it, or try to find every way to fix it immediately.

But God? He has other plans.

Because, so very often, our greatest lessons of all, and our strongest roots of faith, can be found from, and planted within, life's most unraveled moments. And that's exactly why He's standing by, at a prayer's notice; to meet us right there.

Providing to us an unexpected opportunity to learn something treasured about God's ever-giving mercy. Because, when we give the messes a chance...and when we allow those messes to collide with God's unconditional forgiveness and grace, the transformation tends to become something beautifully unanticipated.

So many times, I question what in the world I did to deserve His bountiful grace. Yet, the answer never wavers: nothing. It is completely undeserving. And His promise to keep pouring it into our messes for a lifetime to come? The most beautiful reassurance of all.

"And the grace of the Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus." (1 Timothy 1:14)