Emphasis Preaching Journal

This is a passage which talks about "rewards," but clearly, not rewards as the world knows rewards. The best reward any of us ever receive is a knowledge that we are loved even in the midst of the times we have failed. Simple acts of kindness, like a cup of cold water, bring rewards in ways we never dream. A young football player was the apple of his father's eye. His dad went to every game and beamed whenever his boy scored a touchdown or made a fantastic catch. But one time, during a championship game, the boy suddenly couldn't do anything right. He fumbled, he lost yardage on every play, and he dropped a beautifully thrown pass that he should have caught easily. As he trotted off the field, the crowd booed. He hung his head in shame and disappointment while the crowd screamed insults at him. His dad saw all this happen, and later said, "Never in my life have I wanted to run down on the field and simply put my arms around my boy and just hold him tight. I wanted him to know that he had all the love and comfort and support that I had within me." What a powerful image! It reminds us that when we drop the ball, when we mess up in the game of life, we are not abandoned. The best reward any of us ever receives is a knowledge that we are loved even in the midst of the times we have failed, for those are the times that we need God the most.
-- Owen-Gemoets