“The Wooden Bowl” is November 4’s entry from Dr. David Jeremiah’s ‘Turning Points with God: 365 Daily Devotions’ (2014).
"Receive one another, just as Christ also received us."
Romans 15:7
A frail, old man went to live with his son, daughter-in-law, and young grandson. Every night, the family ate dinner together, but because of the old man’s shaky hands and blurred vision, he had difficulty eating. Peas would roll off of his spoon, and he almost always spilled milk on the table as he tried to take a drink. His son and daughter-in-law became very frustrated and decided to have him sit at his own table in the corner where they wouldn’t have to deal with the mess. Because the old man had broken a dish or two, they gave him a wooden bowl to eat out of.
One night, the old man’s son noticed his boy playing with some wood scraps, and he asked him what he was doing. The boy answered, “I am making a wooden bowl for you and Mommy to eat from when I grow up.” The boy’s parents were speechless and in tears. From that moment on, the grandfather ate at the table with the rest of the family, and somehow, the messes he made never bothered them again.
Impatience can be the result when expectations are not met. No one is perfect, and expecting perfection from someone will be frustrating and unproductive. Choose to love people for who they are, as they are. That’s how God loves us, and He asks us to do the same for others.
To end, a quote from Unknown, “Deal with the faults of others as gently as with your own.”
