Just Any Toy?

I ran across this story this morning as I caught up on my mail after vacation. Thought it would be appropriate here. Enjoy.

After a long day of work, I was ready for a good meal and a peaceful evening at home with my family.
Then it happened! Wham! Crash! As I opened the door, I saw my five-year-old son stomp and crush my daughter's best doll.
The next few minutes were total bedlam - accusations were hurled and tears flowed . Suddenly I found myself embroiled as a referee in a battle I had not expected. Frantically, I searched my mind for an answer to the dilemma. "I must teach my son a lesson he will never forget," I told myself.
I asked him, "Why did you do that?" He casually gave the typical response, "I don't know."
That answer always infuriated me, as it probably has every parent. In anger, and before I could consider the consequences, I blurted out, Well, daddy is going to have to teach you a lesson you will never forget so you will never destroy someone else's property again. Go get me one of your toys, and I'm going to stomp ...."
I tried to check myself, but it was too late. I had already committed myself.

As he turned to walk to his room, I knew I had made a terrible mistake. Anger had replaced reason. Rampant emotion supplanted rational behavior.
Moments seemed like hours. What would he bring back? That rusty old toy truck? Or maybe his baseball bat that I couldn't break no matter how hard I tried.
Around the corner came my son holding the best and most expensive toy he possessed. The last thing I wanted to do was stomp that miniature morcycle. I didn't want to destroy his favorite toy. My heart melted. "O God," I prayed silently, "what shall I do?"

As my son reached me with the toy, tears were flowing down my cheeks. Then the Lord spoke ever so sweetly to me, "Your son is giving you his best. That's what I did for you and your family on Calvary. I gave My best."
As my wife and I laid the little toy on the floor between us, I reached out to hold my two children in my arms. Then I shared the story again of Jesus giving Himself on the cross, and we wept and prayed that God would use this experience to help us always give our best to the Lord.

My son's simplistic actions had taught us a great lesson. Forgotten were the anger and bitterness of a few moments earlier. Instead, the peace of God's love flowed in as we all committed our best to Him.
Five years later our family still remembers very vividly that beautiful night when a small toy morotcycle brought us all closer to God and to one another.