To Manipulate or Not to Manipulate..

Saturday was a very busy day. Nothing new there.

However, for the FIRST time in my life, I colored someone's hair.

I had NEVER before done such a thing.

Now don't get me wrong,

I have been getting MY hair colored since I was 24.

Necessity required it! ;)

Now, confession time. I guess you see my title?

Yes, paragon of motherhood that I am, NOT! :)

Living Outside the Box girl that I am (I WISH, I STRIVE, I TRY!)

I attend a church where we preach the whole Word of God.

We don't compromise the message of the Gospel to "reach more people".

(people really DO respect and want the truth!)

We also do NOT dress it in religious behavior,

at least as much as we know how to refrain from that.

You like jeans? Come on in. You have tatoos, body piercing and purple hair? Come on in!

It's your heart that counts.

That you have a heart after God.

You have a past? Baggage?

So did Saul, so did Mary Magdelene.

Still struggling to get the past OUT of the now and INTO the past?

Come on in! Become a student of The Word.

Find a place to serve. Grow. Learn.

Communion is my favorite thing.

I actually tear up.

I generally sit near the front.

It distracts me to sit elsewhere.

So, it is my wonderfully good fortune to see the people from the back

all the way to the front, one row at a time, file forward for communion.

It's young, old, dressed up in the Sunday best,

dressed down in the latest trend in grunge,

rich, poor, in between,

every color, every style.

To me it is TRUE beauty!

It makes me immeasureably grateful that God works in us,

and teaches us how to come together,

even though many of us, (you would think),

would not have so much in common.

Until we talk, until we share stories.

Then we all find, we 're not so different after all.

Not in what really matters.

That He made us.

That we all have sinned and fallen short of the Glory of God.

That Jesus is our hope, our salvation.

That He likes the many flavors we come in!

He made us to be different and diverse for good reason!

Now, all that said. I got a chance to "practice what I preach"!

I failed. Miserably!

No one would have known.

But, in my heart, I know, I chickened out!

As you can see, my Wild One,

who is into the whole music/skater thing,

was ready to have his dark brown hair dyed black, and streaked red.

I completely didn't mind for myself.

But, as you may recall from this post,

I often choke when it comes to how even the potential of stress,

between my conservative husband (whom I adore)

and my conservative & wild young child may play out.

Jason just likes all sorts of different things!

And we have always loved that he does.

But, since the teen angst has come to visit our house for the second time in our lives,

I was afraid (shameful to say) how my husband would handle this.

I FEARED this so much (to my everlasting chagrin),

that I seized on the opportunity to "minimize the impact" -

(you may pause here to translate this as manipulate the situation),

by informing young son, that putting a hair straightener,

black hair color, then bleached streaks then red over the bleach,

would be too many processes at one time.

The processes would have to be staggered about 1 month apart,

or he could do serious damage to his hair.

Were these facts true? YES, emphatically so.

Was I secretly glad to have less to inform my husband about?

YES! Shamefully so!

Was my young son really hurt to know that once again,

something he has wanted, thought he was going to attain was out of his reach?

YES, Emphatically so.

Did he take this as a sign of personal failure on his part? Yes.

Was I horribly disgusted to realize I had taken a completely healthy situation

and made it a big stinking mess?

Yes! Emphatically so.

What to do? I prayed! Like urgent smoke signals to Heaven.

"Lord, I have done it again. PLEASE intervene for the sake of my son!

I get what I did wrong, what to do now"?

Enter The Lord, riding on a white horse, who is named faithful and true...

(inspired) Me: Jason, lets just do the color, all the colors you wanted,

(I won't tell you what he said red streaks in brown hair would look like!)

I will go back and get the black tomorrow,

we can do the straightener in a month or so.

Jason (with the reluctance that comes from many disappointments):

I dunno. (then eventually) OK, let's do it, Mom!

Me (relieved beyond measure!): You got it kid!

Now for the REAL gift! Not only did we do it.

But this whole conversation was in front of my Honey, his Dad.

Who turned up in the room expectedly.

Guess how he handled it?

Wonderfully, he was such an encouragement to Jason.

Guess who wins the Donkey-butt prize? Yeah, me!

Why oh why could I not just trust God, trust my husband,

and not make things unnecessarily complicated?

Now at least two of his friends are getting permission
from their parents for me to do THEIR hair!

Is God just crazy patient with us? Tender good?

"Fill up and complete my joy by living in harmony
and being of the same mind and one in purpose,
having the same love, being in full accord
and of one harmonious mind and intention.
Do nothing from factional motives
[through contentiousness, strife, selfishness, or for unworthy ends]
or prompted by conceit and empty arrogance.
Instead, in the true spirit of humility (lowliness of mind)
let each regard the others as better than and superior to himself
[thinking more highly of one another than you do of yourselves]."
Philippians 2:2-3

By the way, we touched up the sides yesterday, and made them more black.
So, where you see brown in the pics, it is now jet black. He is pleased as punch!

I love this kid! I betchya' couldn't tell! And His Dad, too!

Ya'll still love me, right? I'll learn! Eventually! :)