Becoming like a child

Throughout his preaching ministry, Jesus used hyperbole, or exaggeration, to teach important lessons. One such lesson comes from Matthew 18: Jesus called his followers to become children in order to enter God's kingdom. Imagine that! The disciples, who were arguing about who would be "first" in the Kingdom, were called to become children (who were considered second-class citizens at that time).

Jesus did not mince words when he gave this challenge: "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of God."

It's been several hundred years, and we still struggle to understand precisely what Jesus meant. Nonetheless, with the recent birth of my son, Hayden, I am a little bit closer to figuring out how we can apply this challenge to our spiritual life. Hayden has taught me how to become a child of God.

Lesson one: little Hayden is vulnerable. He is utterly dependent upon us, his parents, to care for his every need. He unabashedly demands our attention and lets us know, in no uncertain terms, what is required in times of need. There is no pretense; there is no beating around the bush; there are no masks or facetious smiles.

When we come to God, God expects us to be vulnerable too. Many times we are too ashamed to come to God as a babe. We assume that God does not want us with all of our failures and shortcomings, but God is happy to receive us just as we are. Now that is irony!

Lesson two: Hayden cries (a lot). In our social milieu, crying is frowned upon. Someone cries in front of a TV camera, and pundits take it as either trite or contrived. When we cry, we are often apologetic and wipe our tears as soon as they come. Hayden cries and is not afraid to let the tears rip!

Some of us need a good cry too. Our emotional and spiritual cynicism has become too much of a burden, and God gives us permission to wear our emotions on our sleeves. When Hayden cries, it gives his parents the chance to embrace him and help him feel safe. When we cry, it gives God an opportunity to nurture us and be our refuge. I once heard that crying cleans our eyes so that we can see God better.

Lesson three: Hayden trusts us to provide for all his needs. We are there to serve Hayden, and we are rewarded with the opportunity to love him. Are we able to trust God with everything in our life and to fall into the Divine arms without a divided heart?

Lesson four: Hayden is a gift to us. When Hayden entered this world nearly three months ago, we were elated and exuberant. Hayden is not perfect--his head was shaped funny and his face was scrunched up at birth, like that of most babies. He has gas, spits up often, and goes potty whenever and whereever he wants, but we love him anyway, just as he is!

Unfortunately, when we go to God, we imagine God as a judge full of wrath and punishment. We imagine that God is sickened by our sin and turns away from us because He is ashamed of us. We hide from God. If we learn to think like children, we must learn that, as a created being, we are a gift to God just as Hayden is a gift to us. God recieves us with joy; God welcomes us with open arms and a warm, comforting snuggle.

As we consider these little lessons from a little new-born babe, let us continue to strive to "become like children" in order to truly enter God's presence with all the faith and passion that we can muster. Become vulnerable, cry, trust, and lean into God's "everlasting arms."

Spirituality vs. Action?

Even in BCE's Nazareth Manifesto DVD someone says, "we've over-spiritualized" the message of Jesus. What they most likely mean is that we have taken away any "reality" from the message--we've explained Jesus out of reality and into alternate or future realities. They're also most likely attacking the common thought that Jesus' message and life is only about getting into heaven and the formulas many have used to reduce Jesus' message. Though I agree, I think we're hurting ourselves in the long run by continuing to speak disparagingly about spirituality.

Why should we continue to perpetuate the notion (and live with the implications)that spirituality stands in contrast with action? Do we really think that spirituality is navel-gazing that only functions to make us feel good on the inside? If we let this continue we're allowing a wedge to be driven between spirit and body. How can we have the wisdom, guidance, and guts to act with courage if we have not connected with the spirituality of Jesus' message?

I contend that a "spiritual" understanding of Jesus' message, by its very nature, demands action because spirituality is the understanding and practice that brings both the inward and outward together in unity. Without it we are divided selves.