Six -year-old Brandon decided one Saturday morning to fix his
parents pancakes. He found a big bowl and spoon, pulled a chair to the
counter,opened the cupboard and pulled out the heavy flour canister,
spilling it on the floor.He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most of a cup of milk and added some sugar, leaving a floury
trail on the floor which by now had a few tracks left by his kitten.

Brandon was covered with flour and getting frustrated. He wanted this to be something very good for Mom and Dad, but it was getting very bad. He didn't know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven
or on the stove and he didn't know how the stove worked! Suddenly he
saw his kitten licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her
away, knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean
up this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white
and sticky.

And just then he saw Dad standing at the door. Big crocodile
tears welled up in Brandon's eyes. All he'd wanted to do was something
good, but he'd made a terrible mess. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a spanking. But his father just watched him.Then, walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged him and loved him, getting his own pajamas white and sticky in the process.That's how God deals with us. We try to do something good in life, but it turns into a mess. Our marriage gets all sticky or we insult a friend, or we can't stand our job, or our health goes sour.

 Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can't think of
 anything else to do. That's when God picks us up and loves us and
 forgives. But just because we might mess up, we can't stop trying to "make
 pancakes" for God or for others. Sooner or later we'll get it
 right, and then they'll be glad we tried...