"Double-hocked My Daddy"

I was ropin’ that old bucket,

Was maybe twelve years old,

Throw and catch and throw again,

To practice hours untold.

And along came my old Daddy,

And he was walkin’ fast,

Was lookin’ down at cow bills,

I knew he’d soon walk past.

I stood behind a cattle truck,

And slowly twirled my rope,

Decided I’d catch Daddy,

At least that was my hope.

And then before you know it,

I laid a heel loop down,

And double-hocked my Daddy,

Without a single sound.

One little jerk, he stumbled,

Threw down my rope and ran,

It wasn’t Bible language,

Those words of his weren’t bland.

But I did not wait for him,

I just ran and hid,

Waited till he drove away,

‘Fore tellin’ Momma what I did.

She only laughed a little,

But said we’d wait and see,

When home from the cow sale,

Learn what he’d do to me.

And later on that evenin’,

The look on my Dad’s face,

Let me know I’d get some,

Unexpected grace.

The Good Lord will surprise you,

With a special dose of grace,

And you know you don’t deserve it,

But it helps you run life’s race.

And I’ll not forget the moment,

A long, long time ago,

When I double-hocked my Daddy,

And grace was what he showed.

“He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; He took it away, nailing it to the cross…” (Colossians 2:13-14, NIV)

Being forgiven is a miracle of grace. It’s startling, surprising, and overwhelmingly generous. All sins forgiven and never brought up again. Debt canceled, disobedience pardoned, guilt absolved, penalty removed. Forgotten forever…period. Done deal. Have you been surprised by His forgiveness? Or the grace that comes when He calls you to do something you can’t do? And then you can because He empowers you. Or the grace that helps you overcome something that would otherwise do you in or make you give up altogether? But you don’t because somehow His grace is sufficient and makes your weakness strong. Or the grace that surprises you with an unexpected blessing? As my friend, Dr. Stan Cobb, recently told me, “Grace always surprises me!” Or as Phillips, Craig, and Dean sing, “his grace still amazes me…”. Amazing and surprising and almost too wonderful to be true. But it is.

Lord, help us receive and freely share Your surprising grace, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Jason Rich, jasonrichstudios.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Jason, and God bless you.