Following An Exmple

"Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." Matthew 19:14

Jesus loved children. Well, he still loves children, but when he was was here on earth as a man, he had a special affinity for the children. The apostles would try to keep the children away from him, and he rebuked them, as he did above. Children were drawn to Jesus, and actually, they still are drawn to him today. Quite often, it is children who first get their parents to attend church. They have a natural curiosity, and children are naturally drawn to a loving God. Think about it. Think about a neighborhood full of children. Where do the children usually end up congregating? At the house with the nicest parents. They don't play in the yard where the mean mom lives, or they're careful to stay out of the yard of that grumpy old man down the street. Children are naturally drawn to fun and loving people.

So it stands to reason that children should naturally be drawn to us as Christians- right? Since we're supposed to be loving people at all times? I suspect we need to work on this one. And by we, I certainly mean me. This has been a struggle with me for forever! Really, ever since we had Abigail. I can remember living in our first apartment with her as a baby, and taking her out on the porch to play for a while, and this annoying little girl- maybe 5 or so- would just come by and start talking my ear off and asking questions, and driving me batty! And then there was the neighbor later on who had real behavioral issues...and he proclaimed his undying love for our then 4-year old girl. I was very glad when he moved away... Last year we had the older boy living next door who was nice... but he was older, and I worried constantly about him sharing things with the kids that they didn't need to know. And most recently, there are the latchkey kids who will literally spend the entire day in our yard playing with our things- breaking some of them, and really driving me crazy.

At first I would let them play, but they got rough a few times, so I started finding things to do. I would decide to just run into town quick because I wanted to look at something- hey it sent them home for a little while, giving me some peace. There have been a few times where they had to be sent home for hurting someone else, and more often than not, I would just hope that they wouldn't come out to play every day. But the more they've been living in the neighborhood, the more I've felt bad about my behavior and my thoughts. While they are naughty a lot, the fact is that they just aren't getting much attention at home. And while I am not willing to risk the safety of my children in any way, lately I've been a little more accommodating at letting them play. They just need some supervision. Now I find that they're going to be moving soon, and while the biggest part of me is jumping for joy- really. There is a part of me that is sad for them. I hope they're moving someplace where they can just be kids like they are here. And I can only hope that maybe we've made some sort of impression on them. But I guess realistically, I doubt it.

Because what would Jesus have done? He would have loved them from the moment they moved in next door. Regardless of their behavior, he would have oozed love for them- and they would have known it. They would have known that they were welcome to play in his yard at anytime- and that they were welcome to everything he had. And I know that I did not follow that example. If this was a test of some kind, I failed it- hook, line and sinker. And while I think ahead that there could be someone else moving in soon I pray for a better heart regarding them- regardless of who they might be. And meanwhile, while the "naughty neighbors" are still living there, I can do better while they're still here. They're not gone yet, and it's never to late to show someone that you care.