Oh Stained Carpet. And People.

The carpet in our apartment is very old.  The stain protection has long since worn off.  The professional carpet cleaner guy told us there is an old stain deep in the padding layer that gets drawn up with moisture.  That means, even if it's just a water spill the stain turns black.  It's sad.  Any little spill feels like a big deal.  Today as I was trying to deal with a water spill, our 4-year-old said, "Mummy, your words are scaring me."  Oh dear.  I've let the carpet cage us.This week a friend was talking to me about carpet and children."As long as there are growing children living in a home, there is no point in getting new carpet," was her wise advice.This is profound insight.  This is a vision worth embracing.What if I valued stained carpet as a sign that my children were being well-raised?What if split milk was a sign of children being given growing opportunities?What if we had a vision about the messiness of life?  What if we prized stains and mistakes and the need for clean-ups?As long as there are growing humans, there is no point in expecting to have a clean, stain-free community.I'm looking at the stains in our carpet.  And I'm thinking about the stains in our lives.I want to care more about my children than the carpet.I want to care more about people growing than my desire to avoid annoyance.Oh what a gift it would be if we all were given full freedom to grow!  Father God, make my heart more like yours.

Be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other's faults because of your love. (Ephesians 4:2 NLT)