The Children

Luke 18 Now they were bringing even infants to Him that He might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called to them saying, Let the children come to Me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whosoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.

My daughter, Jaimie, has two foster girls; three and four year old siblings. A few days ago on Facebook Jaimie posted a picture that she had taken of a cloudy sky with a hole in it where you could see blue sky and sunshine along with a post from the four year old who was, "pretty sure that God put that hole there so He could get out".

Practical. Simple. Child like faith. Easy and comfortable with God.

This morning I am extremely tired. I got to sleep about four a.m. and up at eight. It has been kind of stressful all week and I am a little grumpy. But Jaimie has been sick for a couple of days so today I am going to pick up the lively three and four year old and they are spending the night with me and uncle Kenny :)

So, before I go to pick them up, I grabbed my Bible for some courage and an attitude adjustment and some spiritual rest from the Lord. I have been reading through the Gospel of Luke and I left off at chapter 17 yesterday.

And 16 verses into chapter 18 Jesus meets me with, Let the children come to Me, and do not hinder them, for to such belong the kingdom of God.

It is no coincidence that the Word of God always seems to know just where we are. It was designed to do just that. And often it holds a mirror up to our hearts so we can examine our thoughts and feelings and discern just how separated those ideas can be from the heart of Christ.

Jesus took the time to really invest Himself in the lives of others. Whether He was relaxing at dinner in their home, traveling across the country, teaching in the temple or even cleaning Solomon's Porch with a hand made whip. He got involved in the lives of those around Him. He left and impression and made an impact.

So today He speaks to my heart about opening myself up to others so that He might flow in and out of our conversations and relationships. By making ourselves available to other people He is able to breathe in out of our lives through our connection by the Holy Spirit. And that, to be perfectly honest, is not always easy for me. I am pretty content at home, at my desk, in my garden, reading or writing. And the thought occurs to me that He was probably pretty comfortable in His home in heaven. He was adored there.

He chose to get involved with us. Without regret. Without complaint. He invested Himself in us so that we might share Him with others.

Father be with Ken and I today as we take care of these precious children that YOU have brought into our family. I pray Father that we would mirror Your heart, Your love, Your ideas about family and generosity. Teach us Lord to be gracious and to let Your Spirit flow in and out of our lives; to really listen and get involved with the people that You have placed in our lives. And Father, as always, thank You for shining the mirror of Your Word into my life. Fan into flame the spark that was lit in my heart Lord Jesus and shine!!!

And tell the little one with you that I said, Hello.