“God made all sorts of living creatures and was pleased with what He saw." ~ Genesis 1:25
Michelle became a mother in that
chair. She’d nursed and rocked babies,
sang hundreds of lullabies, and prayed thousands of prayers there. Name an emotion - any emotion - and she’d
experienced it . . . in that chair.
But eventually, the chair got
relegated to the front porch, where it sat now largely alone. Except for the spider who built her web between
that chair and a post outside her living room window.
Michelle hated spiders.
She’d rather swim in a barrel of rattlesnakes, than be in the same zip
code as the tiniest garden spider. Her
first instinct was to march out the front door and destroy the web and kill the
creepy, little crawler who dared breach their space. Spiders were her enemy!
But didn’t the Bible say
something about loving your enemies?
She’d read that somewhere. Love a
spider? Sorry, never!
The guy who cut her off in traffic yesterday? Yeah, him too.
Friends with political party
affiliations with whom she disagreed? [Sigh] Perhaps,
in a pinch.
Spiders? [Long pause] Maybe . . . what’s loveable
about them?
Michelle googled ‘spiders’ and learned that spiders are
primary controllers of insects. Without them,
our crops would be consumed by those pests.
We’d likely face global famine from the resulting insect apocalypse.
Honestly, that spider had as much if not more reason for living
on earth as she did.
She wondered how many spiders were killed each day by people
who were frightened by them? Some people thought that they’re dirty creatures
that live in filthy houses. But it’s
been said that we have spiders within a few feet of us at all times. Even in hospitals.
She continued reading that female garden spiders can live
for years if they survive the first hard frost. Patience and perseverance. We all need a little of both right now as we
enter a cold winter with uncertainties abound. She glanced again at the spider’s delicate web;
an intricate, sculpture of silky thread, adorned with dew in the watery light
of early morning.
The chair rocked back and forth in the breeze. Perhaps its greatest wonder was the abundant
forgiveness that took place there each night decades ago. After stories, songs and prayers, they dropped
all transgressions right there at the foot of the chair, piling them on top of
one another like stackable cups.
Every cry, every stressor, every negative thing that
happened that day was forgotten; baptized anew every single night in that
rocking chair. Grace washed over them
like a warm rain, forgiven and redeemed, ready for slumber and new mercies in
the morning.
Michelle looked back at the creature with a newly discovered
fondness: “Looks like you found a good home!”
Dear Lord, thank You for making beautiful
creatures that remind us to be still - to hold on and have faith. Even creepy spiders! Amen
