“Grandma, look what I made you.” Caleb handed me a perfectly cut, neatly colored square. As I took the masterpiece, Caleb received a hug and praise, bragging on his creative efforts and super intelligence. Suddenly, a little voice piped up, “I make for you too, Grandma.” I looked down at Nathan who was offering his “masterpiece;” scribbles on torn/cut pieces of paper. He, of course, received the same hugs and praise as his older brother with an extra squeeze. My heart is so full as I look at a folder full of grandchildren “artwork” and an envelope full of torn scraps of paper. They will never win awards or be auctioned at Christies for millions but to me they are priceless. They represent concentrated efforts to return the love they have received back to Grandma. My grandchildren have every confidence that when they offer their expressions of love they will be received with excitement, hugs and accolades. There is no fear that I will laugh, deride their efforts or shower them with condemnation; no, they are secure in Grandma’s love for them.
Oh the freedom I would enjoy if, like my grandchildren, I would learn to trust God’s great love for me. 1 John 4:18 reminds us that “Perfect love casts out all fear.” Yet as adults we allow fear to put up a wall shielding us from the perfect love of God. The fear of “not being good enough”, failure, condemnation, rejection and all the other negative experiences we have had with “imperfect” love. If only I could catch a vision of the heart of God as I present my little torn pieces of paper to Him, confident in His love. If I could understand that my “mess-ups” are never met with condemnation but lovingly, He gently takes my hand, corrects my steps and guides me safely to the right path. If I could only believe that “He will never leave me or forsake me” maybe I wouldn’t find it necessary to test the validity of the statement by “living on the edge.”
My grandchildren aren’t concerned with how fat or skinny I am, whether my hair is fixed perfectly and my clothes are just right, if I live in a big house or if everything is in its place, all they care about is the perfect love and the hugs they are sure to receive at Grandma’s House. I’m not so concerned with the gifts and the blessings that God showers down on me daily, but I crave the feel of being held in His Everlasting Arms. I seek to hear the love He whispers in my ear as I reach out to grasp the gentle hand that guides me every day because I am confident that HE LOVES ME.
“Oh love of God, how rich and pure, how measureless and strong. It shall forevermore endure-- the saint’s and angel’s song.”
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