The Gift of Grace

I learn so many things from my kids. This week, Jadon has taught me about grace. His school has a card system for behavior. They start out on purple. The idea is to stay there all day by having good behavior. Ian & Lynnea never had a problem with this. Jadon is another story. Many days he comes home on green, having had to pull just one card, and almost always for talking. This is the child who thinks that if something comes into his mind, it must come out of his mouth immediately, regardless of what else is going on.

The past couple of weeks have been pretty rough for him. Two days he's had to pull two cards, and one day he had to pull three. That was a bad day. A really bad day. He got in the car in tears and handed me the note from his teacher, which included a list of his transgressions for the day. Talking I can deal with, but bad behavior is a totally different story. He curled up in his seat and said, through lots of tears, "I really didn't like today at all, Mommy." From the front seat I held up the list facing him and said, "Is there anything on this list that is anyone else's fault but yours?" He said no. So I said, pretty sarcastically I have to admit, "Well, if you want to have a better day, make better choices!" I was a bit too angry to punish him this time, so we waited til Daddy came home. He has a bit more of a level head than me.

The next morning about 6 AM, Jadon crawled into bed with me. He wrapped those little arms around my neck and whispered, "I love you, Mommy" just before he fell back asleep. I cuddled him close and prayed for him, all traces of anger and frustration gone. I couldn't help but be reminded of how God deals with us in our sin. Our sin breaks His heart, and He allows us to suffer the consequences for it. But He also freely forgives, extends grace, and restores us to walk with Him again. And He does it over and over. I am so grateful for a Daddy whose lap is always open when I need to cry, ask forgiveness and be restored in grace. And I am grateful for the children He has given to remind me of His character.