Undeserved - greater than all of our efforts
Undeserved - greater than all of our efforts
As much as the constant battle for time and energy to do everything might help me forget this reality, I am just as consistently reminded of what an incredible gift Matteo is. Here is this little bundle of joy entrusted to us. His life and future mostly depend on us and he has so much potential.
What have we done to be entrusted with this responsibility?
What have we done to deserve so much love and joy?
I could list the basic practical realities - of pregnancy, labour and early life. I could list the physical and thoughtful practices we have put into place to help him grow and flourish. I could list all the realities of the life we lived before.
As I hold this little baby in my hands and I look at him, I know the truth, none of this pales in comparison to the immense bounty and responsibility that is right here in front of us. He is an undeserved gift, greater than all our efforts combined.
The gift of Matteo reminds me of Christmas. I think Christmas speaks so easily and truthfully to us, because we know the gift of a child. We know the reality of an undeserved and gracious gift. In that season we live it out and experience it.
Yet, the gift of Christmas, as God being born in our midst (Emmanuel) and God’s gracious (undeserved) gift is so much more than we even know or understand. There are these little reminders in our life of God’s gracious gifts, but then just as often we can ignore them, we can be distracted from them or we can believe they are our right. They are instead a privilege, something God has given us, that we are privileged to experience and have.
This is first, a reminder that we have so much to be thankful for, more than we can ever realize. This should also change the shape of our thankfulness as it is not a passing reality, but a continuous, monumental and life changing reality.
This is second, a reminder that every privilege, every gracious gift from God is a responsibility. So many of us are privileged, but we take it as our right rather than a responsibility. Your privilege may be a baby, or a job, or stuff, or relationships, or situations. Every one of those privileges is meant to be tended and cared for (relationships more than others) and they are meant to be shared. Even at this young age I can see that part of caring for Matteo is sharing him and helping him interact with others.
