Lessons from a Boo-Boo

Yesterday afternoon my wife picked up our son from preschool. I returned home a little later to find that my little man had a boo-boo on his left hand where he had fallen outside at school.

As I looked under the band-aid I noticed that the damage was a little worse than a scratch. While it was nothing major, the boo-boo was actually a result from him trying to catch himself when he fell on asphalt. The worst part was that some of the dirt and debris remained in his hand.

Off to the local Rite-Aid I went and got a few things to help him along including some peroxide. Have you ever tried to put peroxide on a 3.5yr old? Yeah.

So over the next hour I tried to talk to him about what was going to happen and the consequences of taking no action. I wanted his participation with all that was in me. I made him laugh (and cry) but one thing I did was told him the truth. There is no easy way out of this. You're going to experience some level of pain. You can experience a little pain right now or a lot of pain later as infection settles in.

Man... God used that entire hour or so to remind me of Himself. Have you ever been there with God? You have a pain you don't want to endure and you ask God for every rational explanation but truly it doesn't matter. Your understanding of what God is bringing you through is as clouded as my toddler's judgment. It can all make sense but it doesn't feel good so we push back.

As my son did everything to get out of getting the wound clean I felt bad for him but I love him too much to let the dirt settle in under his skin. I knew (as the father) that the outcome for his temporary bliss would be far-reaching and far more damaging than the temporary discomfort he'd have to face.

So there we were. I took him to our back porch and sat his arm across my lap. I braced him for the pain but it didn't help. My son let out noises like I have never heard before. He screamed louder and longer... his face changed colors from pale to red to blue and back. As I cleaned the infected area he battled and pushed away and tried to interfere... but I'm his father. I knew that he had to experience this agonizing but temporal feeling if I was to see him come to wholeness.

After those 5 minutes or so of cleaning this wound I grabbed my son and hugged him tightly. I held him close and whispered my love into his ear. We placed on his hand a "Cars" band-aid and he went into the house repeating to his mommy the battle that the peroxide was waging against the 'bad guy dirt' under his skin. He described the bubbles and the fact that Jesus was going to make him better. It was done. For now.

My son may never remember this day but I will. It was a reminder to me of the process our Heavenly Father puts us through. He knows best and he loves us far too much to allow us to let the small things in our lives remain if they can cause us damage in the long run.

If you're in a season of discomfort, if you're feeling like God is actively pouring peroxide on your wounds please do not run from that. Don't walk away from your father who is cleaning your wounds to get you back out on the playground of life. As you read this note just place yourself in my son's situation as the wound was cleaned. You're in the arms of your father and he's whispering to you that things are going to be okay. Your Heavenly Father loves you and is working to see you healthy and well. Allow him to address your wounds.

These are some lessons I learned last night from a 'boo-boo'.