When she dove in a dumpster for me

For the first 5 years of Jacob’s life, he had a well-loved, treasured baby blanket. It had a name. Boppy.

The shiny new beginnings.

When Andrew was born, Jacob passed Boppy down to his new baby brother. Boppy became Andrew’s prized possession. Everywhere Andrew went, Boppy followed. To bed, in the car, outside to play.

As time and life wears us down.

Over the years this treasured possession began to look more like a torn, worn, and forgotten rag. The once silky edges were no longer present. The body of the blanket began to show its age with little holes. But it wasn’t forgotten at all. It was loved very well.

No matter the condition of Boppy, Andrew’s love remained unchanged. Smelly, stinky, holey – it mattered not. Andrew faithfully loved his prized possession.

When life turns.

One dreadful day of errands, my three little boys and I ventured to Costco. As we stood in the checkout line, Andrew cried out rather loudly, “Where Boppy go? Where Boppy go?”

His cries began to rise as panic set in. I frantically searched the stroller, the buggy. Boppy was nowhere to be found. I grabbed the hands of my little boys and drug them around the store as we retraced our steps. Every last step of that enormous warehouse.

Andrew’s cries escalated as he loudly called out Boppy’s name over and over and over again.

Feeling defeated, the 4 of us gave up the pursuit of Boppy and made our way to Customer Service. I looked for someone I thought would understand. She stood before me like an angel. A mother, a grandmother. She might as well have been an angel.

I explained the situation, but there was no way I could possibly convey the value of this tattered rag. It didn’t aesthetically appear valuable. It appeared worthless. By the way I acted, I’m sure she envisioned a baby blanket covered in jewels.

“Ma’am, at one time this baby blanket was soft, edged in perfect white satin. The print was full of little yellow ducks. But now, the cloth is full of holes. Not one little duck is present. They’ve all been worn, rather loved, right off that cloth. But ma’am, if anyone finds this blanket, they will think it’s an old dust cloth. It looks like it belongs in the trash, but it doesn’t. It’s my son’s prized possession.”

What appears as trash to one is treasure to another.

Andrew’s cries never softened or lessened.

I saw compassion in her eyes as she promised me she would do everything she could to find Boppy.

We left in tears, knowing Boppy was somewhere in that store and not with us where it belonged.

For 2 solid days Andrew cried in fits. He skipped all naps crying out for Boppy. At night he’d fall asleep then wake crying out for Boppy.

We were all exhausted. My heart ached watching my baby hurt.

On the third day, my phone rang. My angel clothed as a Costco employee informed me Boppy had been found. I burst into tears, scooped up my boys, and raced to Costco.

The woman handed us a ziploc bag sealed tightly.

“A customer found this blanket on the floor. Thinking it was an old dust rag, he gave it to an employee. The employee thought it was trash and tossed it. When I described the blanket as you did, the employee remembered throwing it out. But the trash had already been taken out back to the dumpster.”

When someone goes on a rescue mission.

Ya’ll, she went to the dumpster on our behalf. She went to lengths most can’t imagine. All for the sake of love and reuniting my boy with his prized possession this lady went dumpster diving.

She handed the torn, ragged, worn, smelly rag to us. Andrew didn’t see the holes and stains. He saw that stained rag through eyes of deep, unconditional love. He saw it whole and new.

It was his prized possession. His special treasure.

God created man in His image, perfect and whole. But man chose to disobey God. Because of this disobedience, sin entered the world. Because of sin, we have heartache, disease, death, and sadness. And this separates us from our holy, perfect God.

God set out on a rescue mission. One no man could fathom. He went to lengths unimaginable because we are His special treasure. We are his prized possession. He was willing to dig us out of the dumpster and save us when we were unable to save ourselves.

God went dumpster diving to find us in this heap of a mess.

The great rescue.

Here’s how the rescue mission went down. God sent His one and only son, Jesus, to be born on this Earth as a baby. He was fully God and fully man. Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life and was crucified on a cross, bearing the full weight of our sin on Him. He died and resurrected after 3 days.

Jesus defeated death. Death lost its grip on us that very moment. When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, union between God and us is restored.

Apart from Jesus, we are a worn, torn, smelly rag of a blanket. Yet, we are God’s treasure, and because of Christ, He sees us as a perfect, spotless, prized possession.

Boppy had a name.

We have a name.

We are children of God.

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praise of him who called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.

1 Peter 2:9