I'm just back from a weekend at the beach with my two young nieces (Caroline and Grace) and my four year old nephew, and God-son, Kevin. We swam in the ocean, went in and out of every single store on the boardwalk, took long walks on the beach collecting shells and talking, ate yummy food, shared stories, watched fireworks, buried our feet in the sand and just enjoyed every moment of our time together! What a gift from our Lord! Children. . . their joy, their innocence, their energy, their non-judgmental love. . . no wonder our Lord said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of God belongs." (Luke 18:16) They come with absolute faith, no questions or doubt. . .just perfect acceptance that this life God has given them is good and full. They find joy in every moment, big or small. They bring God's light everywhere they go.
At the end of the day, they wanted to sing for me. They wanted to get out their "Meet the Grace Place Kids" album and sing! And sing they did! They sang their hearts out! The girls wanted to sing like Lenore with her stuffy nose, they wanted to sound like Gladys on Knockin' Rockin', they wanted to add a "wof wof" rhythm to "Shine on Me" that they had made up, and then, 4-year old Kevin wanted to sing "My Hero" all by himself. Well, this was one of those moments in life that you know you just will never forget. To hear his sweet little voice singing, "He's my hero, my hero, my hero is God" moved each and every one of us to tears. I will always treasure that whole evening in my heart.
I'm going to try. . . to really, really try to become just like them in my faith. To come before our Lord with the faith of a child. To leave the worries, anxieties, and cares of this world completely in His care as I just curl up next to Him and let Him love me. I believe this is what He wants of us. I believe.
God bless you all. . . His children.
lisa
