When You Hit a Curb

"Mom!" Tucker shouted as he dashed into the house. "A dump truck just hit the curb, and now there's a huge pile of gravel blocking our street! Come out and see it.""I can't leave this pizza sauce right now," Mom said as she sprinkled oregano into the bubbling red mixture she was stirring on the stove. "I'll come out as soon as it's finished.""Well, I hope they get rid of the gravel before Dad tries to come home," said Tucker. "He won't get past that pile on the road!""He may have to go a bit out of his way, but I'm sure he'll find a way to get here," said Mom. By the time Dad came home, the road had been cleared. Tucker was kneading dough for the pizza crust as he told his dad the story of how the dump truck spilled its load. "All that gravel fell out when the truck hit the curb," said Tucker. "Good thing they had a big scooper to clean up the mess." "Good thing." Dad nodded thoughtfully. "You know, people are like that truck.""What?" Tucker asked in surprise. "How?" "We all run into curbs at some point--bumpy times in our lives," Dad explained. "When we do, whatever is in our hearts comes spilling out." "That's right," said Mom. "If we trust in Jesus and depend on Him to guide the way we think and act, His love in our lives will be evident to others by the way we treat them, even when things aren't going so well. But if we ignore God and live life however we want, the pride and selfishness in our hearts comes spilling out when we face a difficult situation." Dad nodded as he tasted the pizza sauce and sprinkled a little more oregano into it. "When we hit a curb in life, the contents of our hearts spill out for everyone to see. That's why it's important to have a relationship with Jesus and trust Him to help us love others. Then when we face a bumpy situation, others will see that He's filled our hearts with good things." -Dalan Decker