Not long ago, our younger son, Tim, and I were talking about being a dad, a relatively new role for him. āI used to get so mad at you kids when you were little,ā I said to him. āYelling so loud I was afraid the neighbors heard.ā
āYou never yelled at us,ā Tim said.
āWhat?ā I paused and looked at him. And then knew that Godās grace had stepped in, allowing him to forget what I remembered painfully. Once again, we were walking in grace.
Walking in Grace. Itās the new title for an annual book of devotionals that Iāve been contributing to even before Tim and his older brother Will were born. A new title? Perhaps. But the concept is as familiar as Godās daily walk with us. Hereās a sneak preview of this upcoming book:
As a father has compassion for his children, so the Lord has compassion for those who fear him. āPsalm 103:13 (NRSV)
I needed something to wear to the gym and grabbed a colorful old T-shirt from the bottom of a drawer. āSuper Dad,ā it said in cartoon script, and āMan of the Hour,ā along with a list of all the qualities a Super Dad should have: āFaster than a speeding lawn mower, more powerful than the lid of a pickle jar, able to diet without losing a single pound…itās a repair man…itās a cash machine…itās Super Dad.ā A long-ago present from my boys. Must have been for my birthday or Fatherās Day.
āLooks just like you,ā some friend said, checking out the shirt. Iād already forgotten I had it on. I looked in the mirror while lifting some weightsānot hugely heavy ones, mind you. Iām not that super. I could see the big āDā in reverse. How did I measure up as a dad?
Iāve never driven a lawn mower. Iām lousy at repair jobs. I couldnāt open most tightly wound pickle lids without help from a jar opener, and heck, Iāve never been one to attempt any sort of diet. But as far as cash machine goes, well, I would take my own father as example. Even when we were grownāespecially as we were launching out in our careersāheād dip his hand into his pocket and pull out a couple of twenties and say, āYou should take these. Iām sure you have a need for it.ā We did.
The thing is when any of us look in the mirror, or at a selfie for that matter, we donāt really see ourselves. That picture can best be found in the eyes of those we love. We are as super as they think. Clearly, Iād kept that funny old T-shirt for a reason.
May those I love see me with love as we mirror Godās love.