Yesterday, we had t-ball practice. It was hot, the kids were tired, and hardly anybody really wanted to be running around in the heat playing tball. Even though Nathan has made significant progress in his skills, yesterday was not a great day for him at practice.
Before I continue, you have to understand that I always bribe reward him with a Slurpee after t-ball practice if he’s a good boy.
Unfortunately, yesterday, he was in rare form, hitting other people and generally disobeying. He wasn’t horrible, but he wasn’t obeying with all of his heart and soul and mind, either.
So, we got into the car after practice, and I asked him if he thought he deserved a Slurpee. I asked what he had done during practice, and then I asked him to tell me if he thought he should get a Slurpee or not. He said he didn’t deserve one but he really wanted one. I agreed with him that he didn’t deserve it.
I stopped at the 7-eleven anyway. As we were getting out of the car, I told Nathan he didn’t deserve a Slurpee, and he busted out in tears, saying, “But I really want one.” He thought he wasn’t going to get one. I told him that sometimes we get stuff we don’t deserve.
I resisted teaching him more about the concept of grace, because I’m not sure how much he really understand, but it’s exactly that kind of love that the Father has for us. He gives us things we don’t deserve all the time. It’s His grace that is amazing. It is His love for us despite our lack of love for Him that makes Him a great God.
I hope that Nathan learned something from our little trip to 7-Eleven, and I hope he will understand more about our gracious God in the future.
