Psalms 119:97-120 * 81, 82; Numbers 11:24-33; Romans 1:28-2:11; Matthew 18:1-9 Have you ever watched children? Their curiosity, precociousness, intensity of focus and curiosity (if but momentary), the simpleness of their joy, their imaginations and trust, their ability to love without reserve, their need to know that they are protected, their innocence of the cruelty that surounds them, are some of the things Jesus is instructing us to model today.
We lose so much of that innocence, sense of wonder and humbleness as we grow older and become more self-reliant. There is a part of us that must act like that in order to survive in this world. In our relationship to God though, we must understand that we cannot define God's boundaries, we cannot define what God can and cannot do. For just as a child can have great joy with the empty box the $500 gift came in, ignoring the gift itself, but playing with the container instead, so must we understand what humbleness means in our relationship with God. What innocence and trust mean in our relationship with God. Even though there is great evil in the world, there is also great good, some of it made by human hands, much of it divine.
Just as Jesus holds the child today, so too are we held by God, loved by God. Grabbing onto that innocence we had as children is something we are reminded of today. This is not an easy thing to do.
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Copyright 2008, John F. Dwyer. All Rights Reserved.
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