the good news is… protection & care for the vulnerable
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Jesus Blesses Little Children
Then children were being brought to him in order that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples spoke sternly to those who brought them, but Jesus said, “Let the children come to me, and do not stop them, for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.” And he laid his hands on them and went on his way.
REFLECTION
In my days spent with our youngest disciples, I have learned that the best way to find a truth is rarely to point at it, but to wonder about it. We do a lot of wandering and wondering together.
I wonder why, in Deuteronomy, God gives such a peculiar command: when you harvest your fields, don’t be too thorough. Leave the edges for the “sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow.” I wonder if God asks for such “messy” margins because our success should never come at the expense of someone else’s survival.
I wonder why the disciples thought the children were a distraction when Jesus clearly showed they were the destination: “Let the children come. ” Did they think Jesus’ time was only for “important” people with “important” problems? They tried to shoo the little ones away, but Jesus knew that how we treat those with the least power reveals the most about our hearts.
Fred Rogers often reminded us that “Children are the neighbors who are often the most overlooked.” As adults, we often harvest our time so tightly that we leave no room for the “interruptions” of a child’s wonder. I wonder what it would be like if, for this Lent, we intentionally stopped harvesting the edges of our lives and started opening them up instead? I wonder if we’ve forgotten that the “small” things we try to bypass are exactly where Jesus is standing.
Written by Crystal Sellers
REFLECT
How might you create a margin in your calendar for a child’s story and quiet in your hearts for the overlooked?