Article

Broken Glass

Written by Pastor Eric Everhart

Wouldn’t you say that as parents, there are more teachable moments with our children than we can keep count of some times. In fact, some of those moments serve as reminders for us as parents and even teach us a few things along the way. I remember this one time when my oldest daughter was about 10, she loved throwing rocks in the backyard. To no avail, I would yell out the back door, “How many times do I have to tell you, stop throwing rocks before you break something!” Every time, the desire to throw rocks outweighed the consequence of breaking something. 

One day, my daughter was throwing rocks again–like she was a major league pitcher. I watched this time from a distance, making sure she couldn’t see me. Next thing I know, CRASH!! One of her famous fastballs got away from her, and through the basement window her pitch went! You could see the terror on her face as she looked around quickly and ran around the house to hide. I didn’t say anything until that night at dinner. I asked my wife, “Hon, do you know what happened to the basement window?” Being in on the  plot  she answered, “Nope, not sure what happened, must have been one of the neighborhood kids.” I could see the distress in my little pitcher as she squirmed at the table. After a few more minutes I said to my wife, “That’s gonna cost a fortune to fix.” All at once my little pitcher broke, “I did it, I did it!” With that, she ran downstairs with the broom and dust pan. 

As I got to the basement, my oldest was on the floor trying to clean up all the broken glass. “I’m sorry daddy, I didn’t mean to, honestly.” I could see the sincerity in her eyes. “I know baby, it’s okay, I forgive you.” I pulled her into my arms and as I held her she looked up at me and said, “But this is going to cost so much daddy, and I don’t have enough money to pay for it.” I smiled at her wiping away her tears, “It’s okay, we have insurance for this kind of thing, we won’t have to pay for it.” She let out a sigh of relief and gave me a big hug back, “Thank you daddy, I love you.” I got a bit choked up as I hugged her back, “I love you too my little pitcher.”

During this time of Thanksgiving, celebrating with family and friends, let us be reminded to give thanks for the amazing gift we have received through Jesus Christ. We have all done our fair share of rock throwing and we have all broken plenty of windows. We try to hide and conceal the sins we have done against God, thinking he doesn’t know. These “hidden” sins weigh on us, take away our freedom, and steal our joy. God already sees and knows the things we have done wrong, both big and small. It saddens God to see us try to hide in the darkness and remain slaves to the broken windows of our lives. 

We are told in God’s word,  “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Don’t hold onto those sins you think you are hiding, come clean with God, who already knows, because he is waiting to embrace you, forgive you, and pour out his love on you. It might be painful at first but I promise you that it will hurt a lot less and for a shorter amount of time if you confess to our Father and receive his forgiveness. 

Remember that  broken glass? We are also broken and the cost to fix our brokenness is too great for us to pay. But God the Father loves us so much that he has taken out an insurance policy that will cover the complete cost, his Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is our assurance of life as we face the cost of our sins. Because of the Father’s love, he sent his Son to the cross to pay for the sins of all those who believe in him. GRACE, delivered to you in a covenantal embrace of the Father!  

What sins do you need to turn over to the Father right now? Can you hear his words, I love you son, I love you daughter! This Thanksgiving, give thanks for the Fathers great, great love!  

“Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.” Psalm 136:26

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