My beloved senior Mom did something so beautiful and loving one day. In my 50s, believe it or not, for the first time in my life, I have fallen in love with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. So one day when I was blessed to be visiting with my Mom whom I don’t get to see for long stretches of time due to my life on the road for Jesus, she went into the kitchen, made me two sandwiches, and blessedly brought them to me. Only problem was when I started on the first sandwich, I noticed something was missing. She had forgotten the jelly! We had a wonderful laugh together, and I still like to tease her about the day she made me peanut butter and jelly sandwiches without jelly. It was all happy and joyful, and I was so thankful to my Mom for how she expressed her love to me – jelly or not. But humor aside, there is a serious message in this – about how we react when we don’t get what we want, when people make a mistake, when people fall short, when people let us down, when people forget something, etc.
Far too many times in my life, when people have fallen short in one way or another, from the very little things like forgetting jelly to the very big things, I have lacked love, kindness, mercy, forgiveness, grace, humility, and thankfulness. I have sinned in my thoughts, words, and actions in response to them. Pride, arrogance, judgment, hurt I won’t let go of, bitterness, impatience, meanness, judgment, condemnation, slander, gossip, vengeance, neglecting or outright refusing to forgive, not taking responsibility for my own sins in the matter, unkindness, lack of love and mercy, etc.
The Bible says we all fall short of God’s glory, and we all love imperfectly and live imperfectly. God commands us to love and calls His children to be a people of mercy, grace, forgiveness, kindness, patience, and the like.
Oh, let us love the Lord with all our hearts in obedience to God’s greatest command – and let us love each other with the love of Christ, oh yes, hallelujah, Amen!
“As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:” Romans 3:10 KJV
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” Romans 3:23 KJV
“A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” John 13:34
God, help us all to love, love, and love, oh Lord, help us to love! No matter what others think, say, and do, oh Lord, help us to love! As you do, oh Lord! With your love, oh God, teach us and help us to love, my God, AMEN!
p.s. I’m finishing up a yummy peanut butter and jelly sandwich as I prepare to publish what I just wrote. This one has plenty of jelly, but no sandwich I make could come close to the blessing of my Mom’s wonderful love!