A Boy's Mistake, The Father's Mercy

Buying a new bed and a mattress, there is nothing like it.

Step one…find the perfect bed. I had waited for this moment for along time so I wanted to enjoy the process. At first, I thought I wanted a poster bed. Ya know…the ‘princess’ look but I could not find one I liked at first. Finally, I found two different styles that I thought would be perfect and they were displayed together. In the end, I decided against the poster bed for one with a tall headboard. I thought that bed would look better when spread one of my handmade quilts on it. I set up the delivery date for the next week.

Now, on to step two…go for the mattresses. I knew exactly what I wanted when it came to that…a tempa-pedic. I just had to find the best price. In my small town, there are not many options. However, I found a store that was moving and needed to sell their inventory. Thus, I got the good discount I was looking for. I set up delivery for the day after the bed would arrive.

The bed came as promised. It was big and heavy but there were two nice size men handling the job.

Then the mattress arrived the next day. A man and his twelve year old son got out of a pickup truck, looked to see where the mattress would be going, and then started to untie the box springs to bring it in first. As the father and son worked together, the father patiently instructed his son on how to maneuver each step of the way. You could tell the son was new at this but the father trusted him to do a good job. The father lifted his side over the footboard first. Then the son followed…but…the son dropped his end on the footboard shelf. When he lifted it up again, I saw the gash. Neither the son nor the father noticed the gash before going back out to get the mattress.

In those next few moments, the Lord cautioned me to hold my tongue. Then, he said,

“Look at what is really going on in this moment. This father and son are working well together and building a lasting relationship. Please don’t disturb their teamwork. Forgive and be at peace.”

Oh how my selfish side wanted to speak forth. However, in the end, I realized God’s request was much more important than my new piece of furniture.

Then this scripture came to mind:

Then said Jesus unto his disciples, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.”

Matthew 16:24

To deny yourself in this context means to forget one's self, lose sight of one's self and one's own interests. It means to say ‘No’ to your self and ‘Yes’ to God.

There was something going on in the spirit and I was asked to step aside and show mercy. Afterwards, when the father and son had gone, God filled me with great joy! I felt my obedience was a victorious moment for both My Lord and me!

What about you? Has God asked you to deny yourself for another in some small way? Remember and Rejoice! Denying yourself is not always some big public persecution event. Sometimes, it is just quiet affirmative smiles between you and Your Heavenly Father.