Why, of course, taking both your children to the ER Thanksgiving weekend!

The first merry incident involved a pea and Joy’s finger pressed firmly up her nose. With ten adults surrounding her (including two nurse practitioners) we tried a variety of homespun methods for dislodging the pea. Straws. Snot suckers. Pepper to make her sneeze. At one point Ben pulled out the central vacuum but was outvoted 9-1.

I found him later in the garage (aka temporary laboratory) with the rubber of a slingshot attached to a large and particularly dirty funnel used for changing oil… Again, he was vetoed.

Alas the time came to forfeit large amounts of money and head to the hospital. It wasn’t all bad at least. They did give her a stuffed animal in the end.

Less than 48 hours later, I woke up from a mid-day nap to hear Isaiah’s bloodcurdling screams and discovered Ben hauling the bleeding boy up the stairs. This time the culprit was an old pair of blinds. And off we went again.

The moral of the story?

Stickers. Always bring stickers to entertain your kid at the ER.

No no, I can do better than that.

I was praying this morning a prayer similar to Psalm 51:1-2:

Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.

As a gal who finds herself bending over approximately 300 times a day to wipe up something the twins so carelessly (and gleefully) drop on the white linoleum, I immediately thought about how weary and dreary and unappealing my request to God was, particularly when considering this wasn’t about a bright kitchen with a few spots on it. I was requesting God to go to the very depths of my heart, to help me with my current negativity and blot out the worst parts of me—the parts I work so hard to hide from anyone else on earth.

And I thought, “What is my view of God, the creator of the world, that I so absentmindedly make this request and assume He will just be a happy camper about complying? For that matter, why do I just assume God wants to spend all this time with me, knowing the worst parts of me, working tirelessly with me as I consistently try and fail and try again, when no other human would be interested in such a task?”

I suppose it’s because God makes it so clear throughout Scripture that that is exactly what He wants to do.

And suddenly I’m grateful.

Just like Ben and I didn’t hesitate to break away from our activities, scoop up our children, and get them the medical help they needed, God doesn’t hesitate to go to the depths for us.

In this season of celebrating Christ’s birth on our behalf, of remembering just how dark and deep God went for us, may we find a renewed spirit of joy and thankfulness.

Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

Psalm 51:10

 

Blessings,