For a good 10 minutes I tried to communicate with my 2 year old. "Haley, will you please unlock the car?" "Just push the button on the door, push the button." "Haley, just reach down an open the car door handle." Beaming with a smile, Haley was thoroughly enjoying the experience. With me safely on the outside, and her a window pane's distance from being punished, Haley took advantage of the experience. She actually opened up an entire packet of gum and began to inhale a huge piece of Hubba Bubba (maybe inhale isn't the right word).
All the while that Haley was on the inside of the car, a commotion was developing in the parking lot. People were overhearing my pleas to my 2 year old and were convinced that I was an abject parent and that they must intervene. In fact, one woman, a self proclaimed parking lot protector, offered to call the cops. "Shall I call the police?" she asked. "No, it's under control" (It really wasn't under control, but I wanted to make it look like it was...). Before I knew it, this well intentioned "do gooder" was delivering my license plate number to the Paso Robles - DMV."
Fortunately, about a half hour later, and a packet of chewing gum longer, Haley was freed from the confines of my car, when she figured out how to open the door on her own...none the worse for the wear (the same cannot be said of her father).
This somewhat traumatic experience made me wonder if God doesn't feel the same way about us at times. Does God feel that He wants to communicate with us, but that we are just as innocently (sometimes not so innocently) oblivious to God's pleas for connection? Does God care about us as much as I care about my daughter, and is He as worried about our safety as I was about Haley's safety? Is the substance that separates us from the full love of God as thin and yet sometimes as impenetrable as a pane of glass?
The answer to all of these questions is "Yes".
My word for the week? Let God connect with you today. He is worried about you, and is trying to get through. God is actually less than a window pane away. Also, don't let your 2 year old play with the car keys...
All for now,
GB
This was a funny, poignant and elegantly descriptive experience that you have shared. The analogy you posed was incredibly perceptive; one that I would never have considered in a similar situation. I have toddlers of my own and in those instances when they are driving me bonkers or making a spectacle, often times, all I can think of (while red faced and agitated) is that I simply wish I could climb underneath a rock and hide. This is something that I obviously cannot do, but after reading your posting, when I am faced with these fanciful peccadilloes, I will surely try to consider what God is trying to teach me. Oh...and I promise not to let my little ones play with the keys. LOL
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