Dark Glasses

Seth and his parents laughed as they watched Seth's five-year-old brother ride his new bicycle full speed up and down the driveway. The training wheels rattled as Camden tried to imitate a motorcycle rider. He wore his helmet and a pair of ski goggles. "Camden, it's getting dark," said Dad. "Why don't you take off those goggles?" "No!" Camden protested. "Motorcycle riders always wear them. I'm a motorcross racer!" "But it's getting dark," Mom said. "The tinted glass on the goggles keeps you from seeing clearly." "I can see," Camden insisted. "Watch this!" He turned and raced to the end of the driveway where he made a sharp U-turn. He didn't notice the loose gravel on the cement. The bike tipped and skidded in the gravel, and Camden spilled onto the concrete, scraping his hands and knees. Seth ran to help his brother untangle himself from his bike. When Mom removed the goggles, Camden saw blood trickling down his leg, and he began to cry. "Come on in with me," said Mom. "Let's get that bandaged up."After Mom cleaned and bandaged the cut on Camden's leg, they all sat down in the family room. "You know what Camden's accident reminds me of?" asked Seth. "What?" asked Mom. "My Sunday school lesson last week," Seth replied. "Camden didn't see the gravel because he was wearing those dark goggles, and Mr. Paul said we don't understand everything about God and what He's doing because we live in a broken world. Mr. Paul said it's like we're looking at life through dark-colored glasses. We don't see all God has planned, and sometimes we mess up and fall along the way because we try to take matters into our own hands instead of trusting Him." "Good point," said Dad. "We don't realize the greatness of God's love and plan for us." "Does God love us and fix our hurts like Mommy does?" Camden asked. Seth and his parents chuckled. "God loves us more than anything!" Dad assured him. "Jesus died to save us, and He's always with us and comforts us when we're hurting. And someday, He will wipe away all our tears!" Mom nodded. "Someday we'll see more clearly and understand so much more!"-Carolyn E. Yost