becoming – Page 6

Thank you, WordPress!

“Blogger” may sound archaic to some as “digital creator” is the trend these days.

Blogging is foundational. Maybe I’ve been on the learning curve for far too long. Slow and steady.

Thank you, WordPress, for the ‘little things’ that help remind me of my Why.

May I “never rest til my good becomes better and my better is best”. So help me God.

On Forgiveness

“Oh, you never really love someone until you learn to forgive…” – Ben&Ben, ‘Leaves’

Have you ever had to forgive someone?

Have you ever needed to be forgiven?

What does forgiveness mean to you?

There is no true, lasting peace without forgiveness.

While forgiveness doesn’t excuse one from the consequences of his or her wrongdoing, forgiveness transforms one’s perspective from victim to victor.

Forgiveness is a gift deeply sought yet not as easily and freely given. Nor is the need for it readily recognized.

It is only when we see the depth of our selfishness and wretchedness can we be truly grateful for another person’s sacrifice on our behalf.

Please bear with me. I do not want to guilt-trip anyone nor sound high and mighty. Figuratively speaking, I’m just as bad as the next criminal on death row.

While the pursuit of holiness, of purity in my inmost being, has become a daily thing for me, it wasn’t always the case.

It wasn’t until my heart understood the depravity of sin that I started taking a U-turn towards God’s design for my life.

I was the woman caught in adultery.

I was the woman at the well, never married but had several husbands.

I was the lame man who missed several opportunities to be healed because nobody helped me get to the water when it stirred.

I was the blind man, who called out His name so I could see.

And, by grace, I’m the Samaritan leper who came back to thank Him.

He forgave me even WHILE I was – and still am – a sinner.

He gave his life as a ransom for mine.

He shed his blood on the Cross to wash my scarlet robes.

He took each whip, each insult, on my behalf.

Oh, how much like heaven would earth be if we each admitted our dire need to receive forgiveness from the One who gave His all, once and for all? And then, just as freely as we receive it, we freely give it away?

But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 BSB
https://bible.com/bible/3034/rom.5.8.BSB

Father God, please help me to freely love and forgive others, just as You have loved and forgiven me. In Christ’s name I pray, Amen.

On Badness

Imagine your 3 year-old being told, “You’re bad! You’re bad!” by a burly grown-up stranger.

I allow my toddler to explore, to be himself, and even at his age, I’ve already been setting healthy boundaries. Unfortunately, I can’t control how his threenager brain works and neither can I control his behavior 100% of the time.

When my little one kicked a stranger, he quickly ran to me and we quickly apologized.

The stranger turned his back on us and, with his booming voice, quipped “I will call the police.”

I whispered to my son, “You are not bad. What you did was bad. We only kick balls and bad people.”

By “bad people,” we mean criminals or the ones who take advantage of the weak.

“We only kick balls,” may sound funny for a grown-up like me. But for my toddler, I think he got the lesson. Besides, it wasn’t the first time I had to tell him that.

Maybe that particular grown-up was in the middle of something and so totally couldn’t be disturbed.

Maybe the grown-up realized his reaction was too much over a little person’s behavior.

Maybe he felt bullied.

Maybe he didn’t care.

Or maybe he DID care.

Still, while I agree that what my son did was a bad thing (with my sincerest apologies) I am honestly not happy nor thankful for a stranger to label my son bad.