Just as I know that my child is capable of better things, so too, does my Eternal Father know that I am capable of better things.
The other day, one of my children was behaving in a particularly “ratty” way. And by that, I mean that they were being particularly troublesome and trying of my patience. I found myself getting stressed with them and the way that they were approaching the whole entire day.
It seemed that the more I tried to reason with this child, the more silly and preposterous their behaviour became.
Eventually, I sort of gave up addressing the questionable behaviour and instead, asked this child to complete some chores for me. Now, these were not just any chores, they were interesting chores that involved taking responsibility for the work. One of these chores included mowing the grass in our backyard. Now this child had never mowed the grass before and this task required quite a bit of supervision from their father. After all, mowing grass can be quite a dangerous activity, and this child knew that their father would have to stay beside them this first time they tried their hand at the task. Accordingly, they were able to spend some time being closely supervised by their father – and gain that attention in a positive manner...
And I have been reflecting on that experience with my child because it reminds me very much of my interactions with my Eternal Father…
You see, sometimes, I also have “ratty” behaviour. Sometimes, I am sinful – pure and simple. Sometimes, I make all the wrong choices, and it seems that the more that I know what I SHOULD do, the less I do it and the more I focus on all the wrong things. And upon reflection I consider how trying to my Eternal Father this behaviour must be. Because, just as I know that my child is capable of better things, so too, does my Eternal Father know that I am capable of better things. And this means that, just as I designed an activity to keep my child busy and under my watchful eye (or his father’s eye at least) so too does my Eternal Father design tasks for me to “help” with that keep me within arm’s reach of Him.
And in this way, I am able to gain the attention of my Eternal Father – the attention that I so strongly crave – while simultaneously focusing my attentions on something more productive than sin.
And so, the next time I find myself thrown into a situation where I am stressed or overwhelmed or completely out of my depth – so to speak – I will look to my Beloved. For it shall be a clear sign to me that I am working on the tasks of the One who made me, and in doing so, I pray that my help shall be pleasing to Him. For after all, what more am I than a badly behaved child, craving my Father’s attention and love, and completely misunderstanding the fact that I have it always – whether I chose to be of help or not…?
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
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