Broken Window

Bible Reading: Romans 6:1-11

Jaxon hadn't meant to break the window. The ball had slipped out of his hand, and now he stood in front of a mess. If only there was some way to hide it, Jaxon thought.

But there wasn't. He couldn't fix it. He'd broken his bedroom window, and his parents were going to find out. They were probably going to ground him.

Jaxon sighed. "It's my own fault. I shouldn't have been playing ball in the house."

Instead of trying to hide things, Jaxon went downstairs. "Dad?" Jaxon said.

Dad turned toward him. "Yes?"

Jaxon looked at his feet. "I broke my window."

Dad got up. "How did that happen?"

"I hit it with a ball," Jaxon mumbled. "I'm sorry."

They went upstairs to look at the damage, and Jaxon waited for his dad to tell him what his punishment was going to be. "I'm sorry," Jaxon said again. "I know I shouldn't have been playing with the ball in here."

Dad nodded slowly. "You did know it's against the rules to play ball in the house, right?"

Jaxon nodded. "I guess I thought I could get away with it if no one saw me."

Dad sighed. "I need to talk to your mom," he said.

Jaxon waited for his parents and was surprised by how calm they looked when they came into his room.

"We decided to give you grace this time," Mom said.

"Grace?" Jaxon asked.

"Yes," said Mom. "We're not giving you what you deserve for breaking the rules. We've decided to give you grace instead." She smiled. "Just like how Jesus gives us grace all the time. He died to take the punishment we deserve for our sins so we could be saved and enjoy life with Him. Whenever we do something wrong, He offers us grace and forgiveness."

"Right," Dad said. "But the Bible says that those saved by grace shouldn't go on sinning. We're trusting that there will be no more ball playing in the house."

"There won't be," Jaxon quickly agreed.

Mom hugged him. "We forgive you and we love you."

"We do," Dad said.

Jaxon smiled. Grace felt pretty amazing.

–Bethany Acker