I Finally Got It

April 18, 2014 | By Chuck

"I Finally Got It" "Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them. Jesus said, Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."(Mt.19:13-14) I guess the disciples thought Jesus was too busy to deal with children. Maybe they rebuked those who brought children to Jesus because they believed Jesus" work was far too important for children. Whatever the case, Jesus was quick to correct the thinking of his disciples and give his time to the children. Jesus cited "for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these" as the reason for his interest in the children, but is that it? Twice a month I'm blessed with the opportunity to spend an hour and a half with several babies and toddlers. We have a great and growing M.O.P.S ministry at the Cabot church which depends on our members to provide childcare for the children. I so love those two Thursday mornings of the month that I get to spend playing with the children. On a recent Thursday morning with the children I had a lot to do and a lot on my mind so my stress level was a little higher than usual. On my way back to the office after my babysitting job was done, I realized that I hadn't even thought about the things that were causing me stress at all in the last hour and a half. I was so involved in holding, hugging, rocking and playing with those children that I totally forgot about my list of things to do. For a little while I was lost in the care free world of those sweet little children. Ever have an "aha" moment? You know, when the light bulb comes on and you think I finally got it. That was mine! That's when I thought to myself, I finally got it! Got what, you might wonder. I think I finally got why the children were such a draw for Jesus. Certainly the "kingdom of heaven belonged to such as these" (Mt.19:14) and yes we are to "change and become like little children" to enter the kingdom of heaven.(Mt.18:3) But I still can't help but wonder if time with the children provided Jesus with a much needed respite from day to day ministry. Jesus was nearly always surrounded by a crowd and was either teaching a parable, preaching a sermon or healing someone. But when he was with the children, although it was still ministry, it seemed to be different, as if it was down time to play and rest his mind. I finally got it! Chuck Ball