By Brenda Black
I guess tender green sprouts and a
brand-spanking new bale of hay aren't enough to stop cows from
knocking down a gate and partying the night away. The evidence was
prolific all around the house from fresh cow patties to deep tracks
through a very soft yard. I even found cow hair on the mailbox! In
the pre-dawn hours of discovery, it was comforting to know they felt
right at home outside my office window where they bedded down
contently. I was also extremely glad it was too early in the season
to have had the garden up and growing. It would have been history!
The funniest part of my investigative
discoveries were the hoof prints that traipsed right beneath our
bedroom window. I had to laugh out loud when I imagined a herd of
cows tip toeing quietly past, signaling to one another some kind of
cow cue that clarified this was a “No Bawling Zone.” Yes, the
cows had a heyday as we slept the night away. I'll never know what I
missed.
I do know, however, that being able to
laugh the next day at the mess was good medicine for my morning. And
a chuckle out loud is hands down a great exercise. I guess I was
already in a good mood and able to handle the unexpected yard
invasion with a little more grace since I'd just come off a weekend
of hilarity and energy in a house full of young adults where sleep
was in short supply, but laughter came in plenty. Their visit also
came with wit and endless ideas for how to have fun and get muddy.
They fished in the rain, tromped
through the lots, and repelled down a zip line, sliding to a stop on
a muddy creek bank. They played soccer and full contact football on
slick, sticky and now-bared spots in the backyard. And then they came
inside. Still, they left more tracks on my heart than they did the
kitchen floor. They burned off the stress of college classes and
small dorm rooms and I was delighted to extend a little grace and let
them make themselves at home.
Laughter and grace go a long way to
level or clean the muddy tracks that trample our well-laid plans and
structured little worlds. And making every effort to see the up side
in life and perpetuate joy reaps blessed benefits worth getting a
little dirty. Hebrews 12:15a beckons us to “See to it that no one
misses the grace of God...” In my country world that includes cows
and college kids! The surprising reward is when I give grace, I get
grace tenfold returned. Not just grace alone, but joy and peace and
good memories to muddy boot!
There are many in this world that just
need a soft place to traipse. They need someone to extend a little
grace; someone who will get a little muddied with their messes and
stresses and welcome them into a home that loves them with the love
of Jesus. It may be a neighbor or stranger. It makes no difference.
God's grace is sufficient. In the family of God, the tracks of
camaraderie run deep and the welcome mat is always marred with
precious feet.
“With great power the apostles
continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much
grace was upon them. There were no needy persons among them. For from
time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the
money from the sales and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was
distributed to anyone as he had need.” (Acts 4:33-35)
I heed this lesson from the first
century Christians: If home is where the heart is, then those who
visit will take a piece of my heart with them when they enter and
when they depart. And I'll keep the welcome mat rolled out til the
cows or the college kids come home again.
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