A Gift for the Ungrateful

"God so loved the world"

John 3:16

Maple syrup.  Real maple syrup.  Real Vermont maple syrup.  Real, grade A, dark amber, Vermont maple syrup.

Or grade B.  That's okay too.  And if it comes from Canada, that's fine.  

Maple syrup matters to me.  I grew up in a house that had the real thing, so my palate became accustomed.  And there came a point when I couldn't even stand artificial.  It doesn't have any flavor at all, to me.  And it's too thick.  They call it "imitation maple" but it does a very poor job of imitating.

It's the reason I never order pancakes or waffles when we go out for breakfast.  There are very few restaurants ~ in my experience ~ that  have the real thing.  Even when we were in Canada, they were serving the fake stuff.  Or should I say faux?

So we keep the real stuff in our home, but I was completely selfish with it.  The Apple of my Eye doesn't like real maple syrup, having been raised on the other, you understand...  And my kids were just fine with the cheap stuff.  In other words, their palates weren't discriminating enough to tell the difference. 

My Awesome Girl has reached the point where she prefers real maple, and I am now happy to share with her.  I'm glad to know she's enjoying it.  But for years, I didn't let my kids have any.   Why waste the expensive stuff on someone who's not going to notice?  I think it's a perfectly logical approach.  I don't think I was being selfish, just frugal. 

But I gotta tell ya, I'm glad God doesn't think like I do.  Every time I remember Romans 5:8, I am just so glad.  Romans 5:8 says "God demonstrates His own love toward us, that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."  It's just such a beautiful reminder that God did not discriminate when it came to offering salvation.  Nobody wanted it; nobody knew we needed it.  The whole thing was His idea, and if He had waited until someone was ready to appreciate it, He would have waited forever.  God sent His Son, for the whole world, knowing full well that some people would never accept it; would never understand or recognize the value of His sacrifice. 

I love Him for it, but only because He first loved me. 

~ "when we were enemies, 

we were reconciled to God

     through the death of His Son" ~

Romans 5:10

~

Answers to yesterday's quiz:  

1 - Mount Sinai; 2 - 3,000; 3 - Mourning; 4 - Fig; 5 - Donkey

6 - Miriam; 7 - Isaiah; 8 - John; 9 - Six; 10 - Jesse