I Used Up the Coffee Creamer
Every time we are asked to write articles on the theme on forgiveness, my brain hits a blank and full writer’s block hits hard. I feel like I’ve told all my good stories of forgiveness, and all that are left are my dumb stories of forgiveness.
You know how in the Bible there are the MAJOR prophets like Isaiah and Daniel, and then the MINOR prophets like Nahum, Amos, and the other little ones that are hard to name?
These are my MINOR forgiveness stories.
Like today—I was moving baby from my arms to my shoulder and my fingernail snagged her nose and scratched her, resulting in instant tears and momma saying, “Oh, I’m so sorry, sweetheart! Mommy didn’t meant to scratch you.”
Or yesterday, I accidently dried my 9-year-olds favorite hoodie after lecturing him to never dry it because it would probably shrink and not fit anymore. Oops. I had to tell him and apologize.
Earlier this week, I had the table all setup for dinner—burger buns √, ketchup √, baked beans √, mustard√, plates √, chips √. We all sat down to dive into our burgers and had no drinks, napkins or silverware. A minor irritation, but still resulted in an, “I’m sorry.”
This morning I dropped my curling iron which bounced from countertop to floor, making a giant CLUNK orchestra on it’s escapade to the floor in the upstairs bathroom. It woke up two of the older boys earlier than needed. “I’m sorry!” I quickly professed to them.
Sunday, I gave the worship team one set of words, and another set to the tech team. They didn’t match. It caused confusion. I’m sorry!
I spilled my coffee on the carpet…
My lunch exploded in the microwave and I left the mess for someone else to clean up…
I didn’t fill the Keurig for the next person…
I didn’t return a text, email, voicemail in a timely manner…
I shut my office door because I’m not in the mood for people…
So many minor things that require a quick and easy apology. Small, but not to be overlooked.
Or this article—it’s technically 17 days late and I’ve been whining about having writer’s block without really even trying. So Jennifer—I’m sorry! I’m going to double proofread it so you don’t have to fix too many grammatical errors!
I often picture forgiveness as this big life-altering event that will radically change the course of events. Sometimes it works that way. But maybe, more often than not, it happens in the little moments, the silly mistakes, the ‘oopsies’ and day-to-day grind. And perhaps these little moments prepare us for the big, life-changing forgiveness narrative when it comes.
By the way, Rick, I used up the rest of your favorite coffee creamer this morning. I should have seen it was low and used less so you’d have some when you got up. My selfish self wanted all of it. I’m sorry!
Leah Carolan
Director of Worship & Media
