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"As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious".
[2]
The family had just arrived home from a long trip. As his parents unpacked their bags and did the numerous chores that needed to be done in such a case, their exuberant little boy went out in the yard to play. After several hours of hectic activity, the father sat down in the living room to rest, just as his son came running in from play. Exhausted from the long drive, the father called the boy over to him saying, "Son, can you go out to the kitchen and bring me a glass of water? Let the faucet run for a minute, so the water will be clear and cold, OK?" The child, who was only 4 years old, said "OK", and quickly ran out of the room, into the kitchen.
The first hurdle the boy had to overcome was his height. He was not tall enough to reach the cabinet where the glasses were kept, or the sink, for that matter. So he drug a chair across the floor and climbed up. It is hard to say how those tiny hands held the heavy glass tumbler he pulled from the cabinet – the only thing that he could reach; the first "glass" that came to hand. That he was able to hold onto it, and fill it to the brim is remarkable, and how he climbed down off the chair with it, no one will ever know.
The first glimpse the father had of his little boy, was that of his son holding the huge tumbler with one tiny hand, palm up, holding the bottom; while the other hand (fingers too short to hold it properly), held it by the rim with fingers on the inside. As he walked the water splashed over the top, some spilling onto the floor, and some washing the dirt of the backyard off his fingers and into the glass. As he made his way around the coffee table, he stumbled over the throw rug, and a bit more water spilled. When he finally made it over to where his father was sitting, the little boy was smiling, joyously offering his dad half a tumbler of muddy water with both arms outstretched. The expression on his face was enough to melt a man’s heart. The father, looking into his son’s big brown eyes, felt his soul touched. He would not have disappointed that little boy’s heart for all of Solomon’s gold. He took the tumbler from the tiny hands and drank the contents – dirt and all, and then pulled the happy child to him. He kissed him and said, "Well done, my son".
You see, with a father’s heart, he could look past the child’s limited ability and lack of knowledge of the proper way to hold a glass. He understood that little feet are prone to stumbling, and he could see the purity of heart and eagerness to please – the obedience of love that his son had for him. It is this that made the child’s service acceptable; a glass of dirty water more delicious than the finest wine. And so it is with our Heavenly Father, He looks into our hearts and sees our intentions. He knows our abilities and our limitations, and takes his pleasure and joy from our sincere efforts to please him, and to do His will.
"O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him".
[3]
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