By Shelly Esser
I ran upstairs. When I opened the door, a huge, beautiful bouquet of flowers greeted me. I was sure the delivery man had the wrong address. After all, who would be sending me flowers? It wasn’t my birthday or a special occasion. But, yes, it was the right address. The flowers were for me! I eagerly tore open the card to see who they could possibly be from. My heart became overwhelmed, and the tears began to flow when I read the card “I love you, John.” On a day when my behavior was at its worst, my husband sent me flowers. I didn’t even come close to deserving them, yet in my sinfulness and weakness, he reached out to me in love and sent me a bouquet of beautiful grace. He forgave me before I even asked him to. I was stunned. Never was my husband more Christ-like than at that moment when he chose to look beyond my sin and instead look at me only with love and compassion. Forgiveness is only possible with that kind of gaze.
