There are brief moments in life
that change our how perspective and outlook on life. We all share brief moments
that just sticks with you forever that change our moral compass in life. These
are life changing moments that are really insignificant to the rest of the
world. It happened to me on bike day. It was bike day at my daughter’s daycare. We
were a struggling young broke family. When I say our family was broke, I mean
counting out change to buy food broke. We had a dose of reality that children
were way more expensive than we figured. My wife was trying hard to raise two
kids, our daughter and myself, and times were tough. Our marriage, our relationship
with God, our finances, our sanity, everything was stretched passed the limit.
Every aspect of life was at the breaking point. To top it off it was bike day.
I got an old bike that our daughter’s grandmother had bought her at a yard sale and we
headed off to school. Abby arrived at school with the excitement of a four year
old on bike day. With this old used, too little, scratched, beat up bike in one
hand, and Abby holding on to the other, we head into to school. We opened up
the first door and there in the entry way were lined up beautiful shinny new
bikes. Pretty bikes, princesses, Disney bikes, all types of shinny new bikes as my daughter’s face lit up like the fourth of July. She looked at the others bike and
then looked at hers as I sat it down besides the others. She did not say a
single word, but I stood there and watched as excitement, awe, enthusiasm all
drained from her face. She looked again at the others bikes and then back at
hers. She then paused and looked up at me, with those beautiful eyes, and said,
“Its OK Daddy, I love you.”
My world with those words came
crashing down. No father felt as low as I did at that exact moment. I kissed
her bye and left. She be-bopped on in and joined her class. Instead of driving to
work I drove to Target. I sat in my truck, tears rolling down my face waiting
for the store to open. I was devising my plan on how I could steal my baby girl
a bike. That transformation on her face was etched into my conscious. As I
waited for the store to open, I kept looking at the clock, the store was
suppose to open at 9:00 it was already ten after and the store was not open
yet. As I pondered why the store was not open yet, I recalled her words. Simple
words all fathers hear from their toddlers. “Daddy I love you.” She loved me,
not a new bike. She loved me despite my ability to get her a material
possession that others had. God granted me the serenity to see that I possessed
the most precious gift of all. I had a daughter who adored me, who looked to me
for protection, guidance, understanding, love, self image, and security. She
looked to me for how to navigate in the world, and I was about to steal her a
bike? She didn't need a new bike, she needed a new father. Call it a mystery,
call it God’s intervention, call it coincidence, but I thank God for whatever
reason Target did not open on time that morning. I left a different person. I
left with my cup overflowing.
In the familiar song of David, Psalm 23, we
are reminded that God anoints our heads with oil. It is a phrase we hear but I
am not sure we all know the true depths of its meaning. God told Moses to make special
oil and anoint specific things with the oil. The oil was to be used sparingly.
When the items were anointed with the oil, they became holy. The ordinary
becomes holy. It means they are set apart from the rest. It is call kadosh, in
Hebrew by anointing with oil takes something plain and ordinary and makes it
Holy. Those who are anointed with oil become an offering to God. This Holy
thing becomes an offering to be used by God. God chose in Jesus Christ to
anoint us, you and I, make us Holy and to be used to glorify God. Anointing
with oil also had another purpose as a healing agent. It was used to remove the
dangerous influences on us in our life, those things that are harmful or cause
disease. Oil was used for medicinal purposes to heal us. God heals us, sets us
apart, and makes our lives Holy.
You anoint my head with oil, my
cup overflows. Our cup overflows, the vessels of our lives can not hold
all the blessings God has in store for us. It is superabundance. God is able to
do more than we can ever ask for or think of. God will accomplish more with us
than we could ever imagine. God’s grace, mercy, a life with God will never run
out. We have an unlimited supply of God’s blessing only if we desire to drink.
The more we drink he more we want, and the closer we get to a right
relationship with God. The more right relationship with God, the more we want.
Want does that mean for my life? I thought this was about stewardship. It is. Stewardship begins we
realize we are anointed by God, by the blood of our Savior Jesus Christ. We are
set apart from others to connect people to love of Jesus Christ. When we acknowledge our anointing, we become like
no other person, no other father, mother, grandparent, child, old adult, young
adult, Elder, deacon, whatever we are in life. Even with all our flaws,
frailties, uncertainties, pain, and anxiety. We realize we can do more than we
have ever imagined. We might be at the lowest point in our lives and realize
what’s truly important. Not in the moment but in the longevity of our lives. We
may realize what we are to others is more important than our current situation.
We may hear the words of one who loves us, say I love you Daddy. We may realize
God anoints our head with oil, and yes, our cup is overflowing.
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