"Knock it off ... now! You are embarrassing us!" If I only had a dollar for every time I heard that as a child...
When we are children, we don't realize that our behavior in public can have such a huge effect on our parents.
As we grow older, or become parents ourselves, we start to realize how true that is.
When a child misbehaves in public, his or her parents feel embarrassed, disappointed, angry and sad all at the same time. Likewise, when a child shines in public, his or her parents feel pleased, happy, proud, etc.
How pleased, then, must God have felt when He watched Jesus defy temptation over and over again here on Earth?
How happy must He have been when He watched our Savior teaching the way to Paradise?
And, how proud must God have been when His Son triumphantly conquered sin, despite the horrific road He had to take to do so?
If they have bumper stickers in Heaven, God's surely says "My Son is an A+".
But what about us? After all, we are His children, too.
What does He feel when He watches us every day?
Do we act the way He wants us to act, and make Him a proud Father?
Or is He trying to tell us that, sometimes, we are just embarrassing Him?
9 comments:
Michael,
Thank you for this humbling and thought provoking post. Sometimes I feel like my earthly report card would be a bit embarrassing to our Heavenly Father. I am always so thankful for His mercy!
I am so attuned to flippancy that whenever I read your posts, I end up staring at a blank comment box for minutes at a time.
Your posts are like a good devotional book, where every morning you nod your head and think, now what will I do with this insight/thought/inspiration/exhortation, etc.
That's the hard part.
Yes, Karinann, whole rivers of mercy are always welcome in my life.
Sometimes when my dogs know they have been bad, they come scuttle-butting to me, humbly hanging their heads, lowering their eyes and peering sorrowfully up at me, begging for mercy. That's how I feel when I think of my sinful life, acknowledging the error of my ways, and pleading to God for Mercy.Ah, for the great reward of hearing Him say,"well done, my good and faithful servant!"
Much food for thought here! I can completely relate to being embarrassed by my children and now that they are teens, becoming the embarrassment to them simply by existing! I pray that I do a better job of pleasing the Lord than I do of pleasing my children!
Thank you for your comments everyone.
Karinann: Trust me, I have gotten many "progress reports" so far. I am hoping to keep clear of detention!
Pennyyak: Wow, thank you. To be honest, I meditate on them for a while, post them, and then learn even more from everyone that comments here!
Shirley: I know exactly how you feel. I have given God the puppy dog look many times over!
Anne: "simply by existing" Thank you for that laugh! I didn't think of it from that angle!
"Knock it off ... now! You are embarrassing us!"
I can hear Him say that right now!
Great post as usual Michael! So much to think about. I'm sure I have failed miserably many, many times, but it's posts like this one that inspire us all to do better. You are truly doing God's work. Thank you. I hope you are having a good week.
How embarassed He must be with me! :(
This lent I just want to sink into His arms and feel His love ...
Victor, Carol and Gabriella
Thank you for taking the time to comment and for the kind words!
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