Skipping school

“But He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.” 2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV

Way back in the day I attended Coronado Junior High School in Kansas City. One of the things I remember about that school is the large wooded area next to it. It seemed huge at the time and it had a little mystique. I attended there from seventh through ninth grade. I don’t think I ever really explored those woods in my first couple of years at the school. However, I heard rumors about those woods. I heard about fights and about high school kids wandering around in them. There was actually a rumor that one of my classmates murdered someone there. It was junior high, rational was not really necessary in our conversations.

The gap between the school and the woods was our practice area for football and track. So it was not a mile wide or anything, but that area was visible from the school. Some of my friends would take a chance of not being seen by making a dash for the woods to skip class. They apparently had the time of their life while doing it because they made it sound great. Finally, as a ninth grader I made my own dash for the woods.

I remember the adrenalin rush like I was escaping Alcatraz or something. There were trails through those woods and I was running on one. I thought I was hot stuff. Eventually, I rounded a corner and ran into one of my teachers. When I say I ran into him, I literally physically ran into him. Also, he was my football coach, Mr. Evans. He actually caught me around the shoulders so it was a close interaction. “Claiborn what are you doing? Get back to class.”

I ran back to class with my imagination running wild. Would my parents actually kill me? Would they dump my body in those woods? Oddly, nothing. I did not get called to the office. My parents did not come pick me up. I took no notes home to them. No trouble.

Keep in mind I had played for that coach for a couple of years. I also was in his class. He knew me. The next time he saw me he was actually smiling. He said something to the effect of “Don’t ever let me catch you doing that again.” There was no way that was ever happening again. But he gave me grace.

This past week we got a phone call from our son’s teacher. He was having a headache at school. He has had headaches before, including a few migraine’s. I hustled up to the school to pick him up on a Friday right after lunch. I went all the way into the school thinking I would just help him if the light was hurting his eyes or something.

He walked around the corner into the hallway and I saw a familiar look on his face. He has an unmistakable smirk. That was the look. He got in the car and I walked around to get in and looked at him. He may have had a headache at some point, but he did not have it anymore. He was flat laughing. He is about as much of a smart ass as anyone I have ever known, but he does not lie. If I ask him, he will tell me. I asked if he was faking. “Yes.” I honestly thought of that encounter in the woods. The grace I received, I gave. I hugged him and drove home.

Those two moments of grace were really small to be honest, but I have been realigning my thoughts on Gods grace all week. I have always sort of thought about God giving me grace begrudgingly. In other words, I assume that He really is mad at me but He is true to His own word and allows grace because He said He would. I assume He really wants to condemn me. What if that is not true? What if He is not mad at me at all? What if He really just wants to give me a hug and move on? What if I learn that His word is fully true?

Do you ever keep a mental list of the sins you think God has not really given you grace for? Ironically, He is not.

Which is easier, giving yourself grace or accepting it from God?

Challenge: Remembering that the empty tomb was first an occupied one. Jesus took steps to prove His grace is real. He came to me.

Rick Claiborn