Amy's 'momentary trouble'

Amy had a very good day yesterday. She ran Brittany to Drivers Ed and Hope to T-ball and then later in the day went to watch Trevor’s baseball game. Needless to say, when 9pm rolled around, she was more than ready to go to bed. To make it even better, she slept clear through until 6am! Neither of us can remember the last time she slept a night through. All in all a pretty good day!

Well, I blew it! I really messed up this time. In preparation for Amy’s surgery/recovery, we sat down with our kids and explained how mom wouldn’t be able to do much around the house for quite awhile and I obviously wouldn’t be home during the day to pick up the slack, so they were going to have to ‘step up to the plate’ and do most if not all of the household chores. Knowing that we were going to need their cooperation to make this work, I included them in the process by allowing them to choose which chores they would do. Brittany even made a chart that listed who did what and on which day so we could post the chart for all to see. We started this last Thursday and by the time Monday came around, there wasn’t a single day where everyone finished all of their chores. I had become frustrated with the fact that what should have worked wasn’t and it had been building since last Thursday. When I got home last night, I saw Brittany sitting on the couch and knowing that she had driver’s Ed. earlier that afternoon, I asked her when she got home and she said 4:30pm (her class runs 2 hours which means they left at 1:30pm to make it there before 2pm) I then asked her if she had worked on her list and she said, ‘No, but I’ve still got time.’ AAAHHHHH! This was something I had talked to them about when we set this up. I told them NOT to put their chores off and that if they took the initiative and got them done early in the day they wouldn’t have to worry if an opportunity came along for them to go do something with a friend. In my frustration I imploded and I lit into her unlike ever before. I have raised my voice before, but I have never been quite that angry before. At the time I felt justified, after all she broke the rules…she didn’t follow the process, a process she not only helped to create, but helped implement! I was right in my interpretation of the ‘law’, but oh was I wrong in the way I processed it. She ended up running off to her room crying…that look of hurt in her eyes will be burned into my memory for a very long time.

Later as I was thinking about what happened, and dealing with my guilt, it came to me that what if God dealt with me in the same fashion when I break the rules or don’t follow the process? I am SO glad that God's love for me isn't dictated by my actions. If it were, I would have deserved death a LONG time ago. I am fortunate and blessed that His reaction to my sinfulness is ALWAYS filtered by my repentance, His grace and bought by the blood of His Son. Brittany and I are OK now (I’ve asked for her forgiveness and she not letting me live it down!), but I am very unhappy with myself for letting anger get the best of me.

This is Amy's story as seen and told by me - V