Mateo’s hands were shaking again. He set down the chipped coffee mug—the one with the faded baseball logo—and stared at his reflection in the dark kitchen window. He saw a forty-three-year-old man who had stopped believing in transformation a long time ago.
That evening, when his son, Daniel, came home with a C- on a math test, Mateo felt the familiar heat rise from his stomach to his throat. The old Mateo would have demanded: “Why didn’t you study? Do you think I work overtime so you can waste your brain?” Mateo’s hands were shaking again
Mateo realized with a shudder: his “plan” had always been to make God a co-signer of Mateo’s comfort. God’s plan was to make Mateo a reflection of His Son—even if that required breaking the old man down. That evening, when his son, Daniel, came home