Day 20: 3-Year-Old Theology

Posted on October 20, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

In the car the other day, Libbie pointed out a cross on a church building. This is nothing new; she likes to bring attention to the cross on our church every time we pull in the parking lot.

But this time, in her little almost-4 voice, she asked me from the backseat:

“If kids obey their mommies, does Jesus still have to die on the cross?”

Oh, child. I didn’t know until recently that I needed a degree in theology to be a Christian parent. (Have I told you about her obsession with where David was before he was born?)

I tried to explain that yes, Jesus needed to die for every sin, and it has already happened, a long time ago.

“Like when I was a baby?”

Much, much longer. Before Mommy was even born. Because you know that is a LONG time.

Then she went through a list of what constitutes sin in her mind. Hitting a brother? Bonking him into something? Yelling at mommy? Did Jesus die for these things?

Yes, baby.

Some days I feel like I am guilting her into obedience, pulling the “Jesus doesn’t like that” card for my convenience. It’s difficult to parent, and even more so to teach about sin and love and grace without teaching legalism.

But Jesus died for my sin, too. For the times I am so impatient I storm to my room like I am the 3-year-old. For the times I cry because I am so relieved to have a few hours to myself when they are in school. For the times I snap and say all the wrong things and dishonor my husband and don’t show anyone even a little bit of God in me.

From the foundation of the world, Jesus planned to die. It was always God’s plan (Rev. 13:8). Sin was not a surprise.

So, for my sweet baby girl and anyone else who needs to know: no matter what, Jesus still had to die. But He did it for you. He wants you that badly. He loves you that much. His grace is that abundant. Nothing you could ever do would change His mind.

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What Do You Do When All Your Plans Fail?

Posted on June 10, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

source: darrenkw

There are times when I’m pretty sure the verse in Isaiah that says, “Make a plan and it will fail” was meant especially for me.

Short term and small things, like our Easter Week activities and this German food bonanza, both ruined by my own sickness. I seem to have a bad track record with Vacation Bible School: the first year we were here, I was struck with the mysterious gallstone or whatever it was. This year, strep throat.

And then there are the big things. Hey, let’s buy a house! Hmm, maybe that wasn’t the best idea we ever had. And in the meanwhile, let’s rent a house from a missionary … who has no idea about renter’s rights and brings me to full-out confrontation over some shrubbery. I was sure the second year Mr. V was at this school we would live on campus – we didn’t. It didn’t look at all promising for the third year – and then, a few days before school started, there we were, moving like crazy people.

We tried to have a baby, and that plan didn’t work for awhile. I wasn’t quite sure about having a second, and bam, there he was.

I’m not even sure why I make any plans anymore. I don’t, really. I mean yes, the day-to-day swimming lessons and coloring pages and trips to the zoo. But long-term? We’re saving money for a down payment. I half expect that economic collapse to really happen and to lose all the money we have. Cynical? Realistic? Pattern? I don’t know.

What I do know is that God’s timing has been right in every situation. I firmly believe we went through foreclosure so we can minister to others who have hit really hard times. I think David needed to be a little older when Libbie hit 3, so I could take care of her aggressive need for attention sometimes. Not to mention, I need those precious, early-toddler giggles, kisses, and belly laughs when I’m having a rough day.

I might regret making certain choices, but I try not to dwell on them, knowing that we can’t change what is in the past. We can only hold on to God’s promises for the future and forge ahead. Maybe every plan I make will fail. But it’s OK … because His won’t.

Let It Rise

Posted on January 15, 2012 by vanderbiltwife

I love bread-baking. I think it’s the simple act of creation: watching a messy pile of flour, liquid, salt, and yeast meld together and then rise, a little miracle in and of itself.

source: torontorob

My first memory of bread-baking is from the mid-90s, when my mother bought into the bread machine craze. She would make a Hawaiian bread, flecked with pineapple and singing with almond extract, that smelled so amazing when it rose we didn’t care that half the time it hit the lid of the machine and fell.

One of my greatest pleasures in being a stay-at-home mom is having the lengths of time it takes to make foods like bread or homemade broths. I may have attempted a loaf here and there when I worked, but not with any regularity. Not enough time to be close to it, carefully evaluating: has it risen enough? do I have time to let it rise AND bake?

Yeast can be a tricky substance, though. If your liquid is too hot, it kills the power of the yeast. If it’s not warm, the yeast might not react.

One of Jesus’ shortest parables is about yeast. Matthew 6:33 says, “He told them still another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed into about sixty poundsof flour until it worked all through the dough.’ ”

That’s it. The whole parable.

I think it was just assumed that the people He spoke to knew how yeast worked. Bread was probably part of their daily diet; bread-making as familiar as it was in the early 20th century in America.

In a big bowl of flour, yeast is just some tiny granules, a miniscule percentage of the whole. And yet without it, we get flat bread. Make the yeast angry and you’ve got a clump of useless dough. It might look OK. Sure, the dough didn’t get quite as puffy as it should. But maybe it will bake right anyway!

Nope.

The image of the kingdom of God being stirred into a giant vat of flour is beautiful to me. We are in a giant world with billions of people. What can we possibly do to change the world for Christ?

But just like yeast, we … no, not we. The Word of God, the Spirit IN us is so powerful that it can affect everything around us. If we empty ourselves out and let Jesus live through us, we can show others how to rise.

That’s why I feel like it’s a miracle each time I make bread.