We try to sleep in on Saturdays. With three youngins' who don't understand why someone would wish to sleep past seven, that rarely happens. So what is a simple girl with three handsome dudes gonna do? I'm gonna go catch me some bargains!
Today was like many prior. After we are all fed and have taken our pee-pee, we put on some shoes and load up our KIA. Our outfits many not match. My hair may not be fixed. I may leave the house with very little money. But we go because it is an adventure.
The first house had some kids clothing and books, which are two items I am always looking out for. My older boys, five and three, each grabbed a Nerf gun and asked to take them home. No. My oldest later found a little, fuchsia colored purse and asked to take that home, you know, since I turned down the toy gun. No, I said, I am not ready for you two to have guns and purses yet.
I began to look through the clothing and was told that each item was only $1. Now, one dollar is a great price, but...well...when I am yard saling, I want to practically make money whilst shopping. Needless to say, I wasn't too disappointed when I only found a few items in the size I was looking for. After making my selections, I paid four bucks and we loaded up.
We decided the day was too nice to miss out on, so we headed home and traded in our KIA for our double-jogging stroller. Three kiddos, two seats: it's like magic, but somehow it works.
Eventually we found out way to Mr.-I-have-about-1000-pieces-of-clothing-I-need-to-unload's house. A yard saling mom's dream, the sign read:
clothing 25cents each, or 5/$1
YES!!!!! THIS is the sale I was looking for!
After buying 50+ articles of clothing, we were ready to head home. I think my oldest son will have every article of clothing he will need for the next 12 months, and knowing that made my heart feel like dancing. As we neared our block, the man who we first purchased clothing from, the $1-a-pop man, waved me down and invited me to return to his sale and simply "have-at-it". Take anything you want, I would rather someone I know get use of it than to donate it. Anything left over is going to the thrift store anyway. WHAT?? After I asked him about half a dozen times if he was certain, he insisted and I approached the table. As it turned out, a mutual neighbor of ours had also unloaded some of the kid's clothing, and in doing so, unearthed clothing in the size I was shopping for. All the clothing I didn't see when doing my dollar shopping, were now easily accessible and FREE.
This reminds me a lot of God's grace. It is grace to buy something for much cheaper than it costs. It is grace to get a super bargain and stock pile clothing for you kiddos as they grow. And it is grace to be given a gift, free, and undeserved, but still, given with such kindness.
God offers us great gifts all the time. Some cost us: time, resources, energy, will. They are sometimes difficult to embrace and we shy away because we aren't certain they are worth the output asked of us.
Walking away from that dirty movie to keep a pure heart...reading your Bible to know God more...waking up for church to join in fellowship....
Other gifts are given with such vigor that we stockpile these gifts and our hearts dance. They excite us and we celebrate them.
Grace...mercy...peace....
And then there is this other type of gift. It is rare and when it makes itself available to you, you gasp and asked repeatedly if it is really, truly ok. And it is.
Jesus loves us enough to call us His. He lived and died, and rose again so that we can live with Him in Heaven.
His free and perfect gift is salvation.
I am reading Bob Goff's, Love Does, and it is blowing my mind. Bob is living. ON PURPOSE! And it makes me deliriously happy and excited and encourages me to do the same.
What better adventure...what more rewarding life...can there be apart from the Life Giver?
It doesn't compute.
The Message Bible reads, Live full lives, full in the fullness of God. (page 356) It continues, His (Jesus) love was not cautious but extravagant. He didn't love in order to get something from us but to give everything of Himself to us. Love like that. (358)
Imagine today if you see Jesus. He has something to offer you. Something you want. You count the cost. You walk away.
What if He pursues you? Waves you down and insists you return: come, it's all free.
This is the FREE GIFT of God. That Jesus would die for us to live.
Once I could not be excited to life for God, because I did not know what that meant or how to begin. Now, I am excited about life and keep seeing #GODsmilingonme .
-full of grace,
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