Merciful Hairdo

“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22–23

Our daughter likes variety. She wants something new every ten minutes.

My wife is extremely patient with our daughter’s impatience.

Tonight, my wife — who was suffering from a day-long headache — offered to braid our daughter’s hair.

She refused. “No!”

“Mama does so many things you ask her to do,” I told her. “You won’t let her do this one thing?”

She relented.

To the surprise of neither me nor my wife, our daughter loved the results. She demanded a photoshoot.

Her refusal to accept this gift — and then being so pleased with it she wanted to celebrate it — reminded me of the way we treat God’s mercy and grace.

Mercy is the opposite of grace. Mercy is when we don’t get what we deserve. Grace is when we get what we don’t deserve.

Given her attitude, our daughter deserved a quick trip to the bathtub and her bed.

In her mercy, my wife withheld punishment. With grace, my wife gave her a beautiful hairdo.

I am in awe of my wife’s patience with our daughter. I am even more in awe of God’s mercy towards and faithfulness to me.