clean slates ...

one of my favorite things about my job is a child’s incredible ability to wipe the slate clean.

yesterday ended in a full-on battle of the wills with one of my kiddos, and him screaming at the top of his lungs that i was no longer his friend. today was probably the best day we’ve had yet.

1 corinthians 13:5 & 7 says that love “is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. it always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”

at what age do we start keeping score? when do the offenses start piling up so high that we can’t get past them quite so easily? how do we get to the place of no longer being able to look at our current circumstances without first putting them through the filter of past experiences? why do we make others pay for our own sins and mistakes, fears and scars, or those of someone else?

when do we stop loving the way that God created us to love? the way that He loves us?

as far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions from us. (psalm 103:12)

He has removed our transgressions from us. what right have we to hold another’s transgressions against them?

the faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning. (lamentations 3:22-23)

i cannot tell you how incredibly thankful i am for this promise - to know that when i wake up my slate is wiped clean and that God is ready and waiting to make this our best day yet. He doesn’t remember the bad things that happened yesterday, and neither should we. and because He doesn’t remember, He also won’t remind us of them. He only wants us to come to Him with a completely clear conscience and climb in His lap, just like a child coming to her daddy, not letting fear or shame hinder our relationship.

but Jesus called the children to Him and said, “let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” (luke 18:16-17)

the kingdom of God is a clean slate, and God’s love is the great eraser. as we go through a day, our slates may get marked up, but God’s love is right behind to wipe them clean. and because of His love in us, we have also been given an eraser to wipe away the marks left by other people.

this could be your best day yet. will you start wiping?