I have been bombarded with plenty of different life experiences in my short years of living. But, I have never walked away with more "nuggets 'o knowledge" through anything other than working with children. If I had been more intelligent, or more conscientious about the future, I probably would have walked around with a tape recorder and recorded every interaction I have ever had with a child.
I have learned an incredible amount about men from boys under the age of five. One boy in particular has this uncanny way of making your heart melt while simultaneously frustrating you beyond your perceived limitations. On the playground a few sunny days ago, an affectionate four year old girl walked up to me pouting about my precious little gem.
"He said the "s" word."
The "s" word to every child across the nation is either "stupid" or "shut up". Knowing the nature of my precious darling I knew that he had just called her stupid. I began the journey of wrangling the little demon, er, lovable darling and dragged him to what we in authority like to note as the "sitting bench". He screamed that he did not want to sit, and I did not have a hard time believing that. After holding him while he struggled against my hug I got him to take a breath.
"I am never going to talk to you."
I thought I might have reached the end of my rope at this point, but I patiently waited for his next remark.
"She's the stupidest meanest girl on this whole playground."
"That isn't very nice!" I gasped in my mild shocked voice.
"She's always saying that she loves me and that she wants to play with me, but she keeps hiding and she just won't play with me!"
"I am positive that she loves you."
Here she chimed in, "Of course I love you! You're my cousin."
He looked at me in all seriousness and replied, "She doesn't love me! She keeps running away from me! That isn't love!'
And in that moment, I realized that this boy had muttered something that we too often unlearn. Love is often looked at as if it were a game, where we chase and chase the rabbit until we catch one (any at all) and keep it. Or we make the allusion to fishing and say that there are many other fish in the sea when the one we had our sights on evades us. But, honest true love doesn't have a reason to run.
Then why do I run from God's love? Why do I run from Him? Is the Creator of the Universe telling an audience of the Heavenly Host that I don't love Him because I say that I want to follow Him and be His, but then I just keep running away from Him? Can He, too, say "That isn't love! She just keeps running away from me! She doesn't love me!"
1 comments:
Very true words. Something that I came to discover a couple of years ago. I hadn't really realized I kept running from Him, and though He tried to tell me softly many times before, I would ignore it.
Even now, I am guilty of running, whether it be because of fear, or wanting other things.
I think if more Christians really realized this and started seeking to change it in their lives, Christianity would have a very different face in the world today.
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