Redemption

Remembering the power of our God...

I stand in my kitchen, dinner unplanned, a heavy dose of bad parenting under my belt and fatigued beyond the point of no return.  Schoolwork is done, but barely.  And the aftermath of it all, intermingled with other various ill-placed items, is strewn about my house.  I watch my kids playing outside the kitchen window and sigh.

I start to unravel the mess.  School papers first.  Checklists are piled up by the computer for later entry.  I open the refrigerator and start to rummage around for something (anything!) to throw together.  I contemplate.  How did I get here? How in the world did I blow it...again? 

I hear a little girl yell my name and walk outside.  My middle daughter is reaching into the tree for more pieces of whatever-it-is-she-is-creating-with today.  She asks, "What's it called again when you take something ugly and turn it into something beautiful?"  She pulls hard and the thing pops off the tree.  My eyes well up.  I say it first in my mind. Redemption. 

"You mean to redeem something?"  I ask.  She smiles wide.  "Yes!  I'm redeeming these little balls."  I praise her for her efforts and snap her picture.

I walk back inside as the tears spill out and over.  I say it again, softly.  Redemption.  I wipe my eyes and walk back into my kitchen.  I have a Redeemer.  Today, tomorrow...every day.  Redemption.

I've spent a lot of time talking to my children about redemption.  About the God we serve.  The God of second chances. The God of new beginnings.  The God of rebirth.  Yet, here I stood, moments before, lamenting the loss of a day...the loss of my resolve.  Is anything beyond the redemptive power of our Savior?

Sin.  Today I am girded with many mistakes...but the truest balk at my Lord was the failure of my spirit to embrace His power.  This day was not ruined when I snapped at my daughter.  It was not lost the moment I ceased to plan dinner.  It wasn't even destroyed when I hurried through lessons, not patient enough to savor the moments.  Sinful moments, yes.  But to participate in the of the desecration of a day by ignoring the power of a God who has redeemed me a thousand times over?  To shun the ability of Christ to redeem it...redeem me?  That is the sin that has corrupted this day and nearly crushed my spirit.

We serve a God who was resurrected from beyond the grave.  He walked on water, calmed the storms and made the blind man see.

Lord, help me see.

Waffles.  I make the decision.  I get out the waffle maker.  I put the house back together.  I pray without ceasing...for forgiveness...for redemption.  I walk outside to see what my daughter has created (redeemed.)  She has braided the stems of the little "balls" and created bundles of beauty, nature inspired. The weather is beautiful.  The sun is slowly sinking, but it's not gone.  The day is still present.  It is present and hope and joy abound as I shift my paradigm and consider the power of our God.

My husband pulls into the driveway.  The kids run and jump and he asks what is for dinner.  They screech it joyfully.  He asks how our day was.  I smile.  The kids smile. The child in the middle shows him her creations.  He oohs and ahhs and praises.  She beams.

I feel my chest expand as the scent of fall permeates.  The sun sinks lower.  I thank God for second chances.  And third chances.  And a million chances to serve Him.  I thank Him for redemption.  And for the children who opened my eyes to its power today.