“It’s snowing!” It was 92 degrees and thick with
southern June humidity in my backyard.
My three-year-old son and I were splashing in his wading pool, leaning
back looking at the treetops. We called
it “flower snow”—wispy cotton-like bunches floating down from a neighbor’s
tree. I tried to capture it on my phone
camera, but it just didn’t look as impressive as it did in person.
The
next day was Sunday, and we slept in as a family, super late for a family with
a little one: 7:30 am! My little one had
only taken juice that morning, ignoring other offers of food, so by 9:00, he
was hangry. We sat down to church online
and crispy bacon and eggs. Too late—the volcano
of Mt. Threenager was about to erupt. He
wasn’t wanting to share the attention with the pastor on TV, who was teaching
about the Passover feast. My son was
trying to distract my husband by pulling off the long brown rubber piece of
coffee table edge protector knowing he was not supposed to do this. He was waving it in my husband’s face
taunting him. After several redirection
attempts, the piece was taken away.
The
fit that followed was quite a battle. Surely it lasted a few days it seemed,
but it was only an hour because it was over when church finished. He refused to be settled and ended up in time
out repeatedly for hitting. He reminded
me of Paul’s words in the Bible about doing what he didn’t want to do. My son would ask for me, then shut the door
or run away if I came close. He was a
true picture of sin nature, for he got himself into that situation by his own
poor choices, and he was miserable because of it. The screaming, the wailing, and occasional
banging were draining and unpleasant for all of us. I managed to catch maybe two points of the
sermon.
Why
didn’t he just give it up and let me sooth him?
I wonder if God has wondered that with us at times, too. Just when I thought it was over, he asked for
the brown table protector piece again.
Wow, talk about strong-willed, or maybe he was trying to make the
situation right. Regardless, he did not
receive the brown piece after all that.
He was finally snuggled into my arms on the couch eating a small feast
of bacon and dried strawberries. As my
husband and I took communion, I noticed my son watching it as he never had
before. Hopefully something good can
come out of that fit for after sin and devastation, God can restore. He gave his body and blood to save us from
our sin and devastation. My husband
pointed to the window, and we looked out to see a huge drift of “flower snow”! And this was all as the worship band sang
about Jesus making us whiter than snow!
