Next to ironing, the chore I dislike the most is balancing the checkbook. It aggravates me to no end to spend all that time and still only be off. Sometimes the amount is massive; other times it's only a few cents. But either way, it's not balanced. And I don't like that.
Steve Amerson's recent promotional e-mail also included a devotion with the promotion. He started off talking about balancing a checkbook. He ended with reconciliation.
The following sentences really struck me:
The act of reconciliation not only acknowledges mistakes, but corrects them. Reconciliation cannot happen as long as the mistake is not acknowledged. The means of correction (or forgiveness) can be available or already accomplished, but if it is not accepted, reconciliation will not be experienced.
It's an interesting parallel. We never balance our checkbook until we find the problem and correct it; we never have reconciliation with a brother and sister until we find the problem and correct it. Bobby and I used to somewhat laugh about two young children who loved rules...as long as they applied to everyone else. They never wanted the rules to be enforced on them, though. And I sadly often find that to be the case with me. I want the rules to apply, until the correction applies to me. Then I want only mercy. How childlike is that? And like the quote above, until I admit my mistakes, reconciliation will never happen. There will never be a balance.
I hate it when something I intensely dislike doing becomes a spiritual application.
Steve Amerson's recent promotional e-mail also included a devotion with the promotion. He started off talking about balancing a checkbook. He ended with reconciliation.
The following sentences really struck me:
The act of reconciliation not only acknowledges mistakes, but corrects them. Reconciliation cannot happen as long as the mistake is not acknowledged. The means of correction (or forgiveness) can be available or already accomplished, but if it is not accepted, reconciliation will not be experienced.
It's an interesting parallel. We never balance our checkbook until we find the problem and correct it; we never have reconciliation with a brother and sister until we find the problem and correct it. Bobby and I used to somewhat laugh about two young children who loved rules...as long as they applied to everyone else. They never wanted the rules to be enforced on them, though. And I sadly often find that to be the case with me. I want the rules to apply, until the correction applies to me. Then I want only mercy. How childlike is that? And like the quote above, until I admit my mistakes, reconciliation will never happen. There will never be a balance.
I hate it when something I intensely dislike doing becomes a spiritual application.
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