Cleaning out

Today is one of those days when I think God allowed me to have two beautiful girls so I could learn to be loved by Him more. I have been so busy in the past months, I do all the right things to get by, to show love, to extend kindness, to teach responsibility, to administer jobs, to listen and to still find time to be so overwhelmed by my duties I become blind to obvious actions by my kids who are needing attended to.

I was cleaning out this weekend and found some school papers that had been hidden away and not completed. My first response was "That little stinker!" And then I was saddened by the awareness that I have been so "busy" I was unaware of what had been hidden from me. How holding onto secrets makes such distance between those who love each other. So, with much grace and forgiveness I patted myself on the back and started today with an agenda of restitution and new resolution, thinking I had gotten "it". URRRGH!

I guess the Lord thought I needed a bigger push to get the message across of hiding from our sin and how the burden of carrying the secret was worse than if we just confess it and then move along in the forgiveness offered. Yep. I found a whole bunch of more hidden papers. So, when truth finally came out into the light of day and not hidden in the darkness of a curtained corner, the shoulders sagged and the whole secret came out. She was so ashamed of her actions, she thought we would not love her if we knew the whole truth.

Oh, how common is this for all of us. How often do we try to hide our sins from the Father. How often do we keep the truth from Him, because we think He cannot love us if He only knew about ALL of what we had done.

So today I shared with my little one again, how there is nothing she can do to separate my love from her. And how her heavenly Father feels the same way. I was able to help her know the freedom that comes with confession. As I was gently leading her along this path, I sure felt my heavenly Father holding me close yet again, and reminding me of the same thing. He loves me. No matter what. And how I can walk in freedom when I am unburdened by those secret sins. I am so thankful grace abounds for us all.