A Busted-Up Sandcastle

Read: Romans 5:6-8; 2 Timothy 1:9-10 Bax scooped the wet sand with as much care as he could stand, completing the last tower on his masterpiece. Finally, he thought. He sat back and admired his creation, but only long enough for his three-year-old brother Matt to run up from the water’s edge. “Mommy, I found a—” CRASH! Matt tripped over Bax’s bucket and fell headlong into Bax’s castle! “Matt! Look what you did! I’ve been working on my castle the whole time we’ve been here!” Angry, Bax advanced on his brother, wielding his plastic shovel. Matt beat a hasty retreat behind their mother. “I sorry, Bax, I sorry! Accident!” Matt cried. Mom stepped in. “Bax, we don’t hit others. You know that Matt just tripped over your bucket. I think you can show him some grace.” “But Mom, he ruined my sandcastle! If I had wrecked something Matt made, I’d definitely get in trouble,” Bax complained. “Maybe, but remember what we talked about at church this week? We don’t suffer the worst consequences for the bad things we’ve done because Jesus showed us grace. He died for us on the cross and came back to life. Because of that, you can show that same kind of grace by forgiving your brother.” “But that’s not fair!” Bax exclaimed. “No, that’s not fair, but neither is the grace Jesus gives us. It’s not fair that God should treat us like we’ve done no wrong when we’ve certainly lied and cheated and acted selfishly.” Mom looked at him expectantly as Matt snuffled noisily. Bax looked down at his smashed castle, then back at his brother’s red face. “I’m sorry for yelling at you, Matt. I’m sad about my sandcastle, but I know you didn’t do it on purpose. I forgive you. Can you forgive me too?” Matt shuffled back around Mom and said, “I sorry too, Bax. I forgive you.” “Thank you, boys,” Mom said. “And I have an idea. Let’s go up to the snack shop and get some ice cream!” “Yes!” both boys exclaimed, and they started running up the beach, both relieved that they had been shown grace. –Dylan Kraayenbrink How about you? Can you think of a time when you were forgiven even though you had done something wrong? That wasn’t fair, but it was an example of someone showing you grace. God showed us grace by sending Jesus to die for our sins. When you trust in Jesus and accept God’s forgiveness, He gives you the Holy Spirit, who empowers you to give grace to others, even when it’s not fair or you don’t feel like it. Today's Key Verse: Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:32 (NIV) Today's Key Thought: Forgive others