Thursday, December 19, 2013

Through the Eyes of a Child

Mark 10.13-16

People were bringing little children to Jesus to have him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them.  When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.  I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” And he took the children in his arms, put his hands on them and blessed them.

Every December, I think about Pre-Kindergarten. You see, that’s when I got to re-enact history with my classmates in the highly anticipated Pre-K Christmas Pageant. We all knew the story because we had heard it from our parents, watched it on “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” talked about it in Sunday school, and the teachers at my Episcopal school had read us the book.  I remember being assigned the role of an angel. There were lots of angels. There were shepherds, sheep, a cow, a donkey, and a mouse. The three wise men, and the most important roles, Mary, and Joseph, were chosen by the music teacher. Baby Jesus was a doll from our classroom. We rehearsed the songs about “Yonder Star” and Mary and Joseph going door to door and finally finding a stable and a manger.

The day of the Pageant, we lined up at the back of the chapel with our halos and wings on, excited to tell the great news. We couldn’t wait to proudly march down the aisle. We never doubted the story. We believed because those we trusted told us it was true. We were there that day to faithfully retell the story just as the class before had done. Jesus said that we should believe in him with the kind of childlike faith the children in the passage above felt.

This Advent season, don’t think like an adult. Don’t rush around too much worrying about all that shopping and spending. Remember the wonder and awe of your pageant. Or the way you believed in Santa Claus.  Summon your childlike faith and celebrate!

Adelaide Graham, Variations & YAC member