DAY 3 — THE BURNED TOAST

“Love That Chooses Relationship Over Irritation”

A young wife rushed through breakfast preparations before work.
Distracted, she left the bread in the toaster too long.
When she served it, the slices were black, crisp, and smoky.

Embarrassed, she said,
“I’m so sorry… I ruined breakfast.”

Her husband didn’t react with frustration.
He simply picked up the slice,
scraped away the burnt edges,
and ate it quietly with a smile.

After a moment she asked,
“You’re not upset?”

He looked at her lovingly and said,
“Of course not.
I love you far more
than I dislike burnt toast.”

And in that simple moment,
she felt more cherished than any perfectly prepared meal could have made her.

Lent invites us to examine the places
where we choose irritation over love,
judgment over patience,
perfectionism over relationship.

Burnt toast moments happen every day —
mistakes, imperfections, disappointments,
minor frustrations that can either
trigger anger or open the door to grace.

God treats us just like that husband:
He scrapes off our burnt edges
with gentleness, not condemnation.
He cares more about the relationship
than the mistake.

Lent is not a season to punish yourself;
it is a season to encounter the patient love of God
and to learn to offer that same patience
to the people around you.