The Things I Learn from Chocolate

For Christmas, Jason gave me a bag of Dove Dark Chocolates. I'm amazed that we waited over a month before opening them, but today we opened them for dessert after lunch. They're the promises. You know, the ones that have pithy saying written in the wrapper. I think the first one I opened said something like, "Your smile could light up a room." Well, thanks. That makes me feel great.

The second one I opened, however, made me think. It said, "Love rules without rules."

Now, that's simply not true. Genuine love loves with rules and parameters. What kind of mom would I be if I never set any guidelines for Abby and Jake? I'd be a pretty lousy one. Jason and I institute rules because we love our children.

For example, I tell Abby she can't run in a parking lot (a rule) because I don't want her to get hurt, not because I hate her.

Somewhere along the line, our culture has bought into the lie that true love allows us to do whatever we want whenever we want. That's simply not true.

What kind of God would we serve who never told us no? If I never tell Abby no I create a brat, and the same goes for God. I'm afraid we have lots of spiritual brats running around because they refuse to believe in a God who would tell them no. Instead they create their own god who never tells them no, and thus act like spoiled brats. My God disciplines me and puts limits in my life for my good, whether I see and understand that or not.

It's kind of amazing how something as simple as a piece of chocolate can make you think.