like kids in a candy shop <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>Tuesday, 3:30 PM, Forest Falls, California, by the side of the swimming pool.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m spending an hour lazing in the sun, making up for the last three hundred days in the raincity. \u00a0It\u2019s glorious. \u00a0When I\u2019m warm I dive in, and then lay down again, reading and chatting with guests until I\u2019m dry, and then I dive in again. This is ministry? \u00a0Yes. \u00a0I\u2019m teaching this week, but am happy to report that I\u2019m learning as well.<\/p>\n
This is a family conference, which means that there are hundreds of small children roaming around all the time, including here at the pool. \u00a0There\u2019s something about being so far removed from the \u201csmall children\u201d phase that causes me to watch them all, with great delight.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s a little boy of about 2 running around on the cement by the side of the pool screaming with glee because there\u2019s a butterfly floating through the air, occasionally landing for a break. \u00a0The child is following him everywhere, and when the butterfly stops, he points and squeals, eager to share it\u2019s beauty with all of us. \u00a0When the butterfly leaves, the little boy leaves too \u2013 he\u2019s headed for the diving board! \u00a0His dad is out of his hammock like a shot, saving him from himself. \u00a0The kid protests, but not too much. \u00a0Soon his laying on a towel in the sun with his older sister.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnless you have faith like a little child\u2026.\u201d is what the Bible says, and I think about this little kid and all that he\u2019s teaching me about how a mature faith is childlike:<\/p>\n
1. He sees stuff. \u00a0As we grow older we go through life in a fog. \u00a0Sunrises and soil, music and the subtle flavors of food, animals and art \u2013 when did we stop paying attention? \u00a0I think we stopped paying attention when we thought it was up to us to care for ourselves, protect ourselves, provide for ourselves. \u00a0Of course, those are all lies, and the lies keep us in a fog.<\/p>\n
2. He\u2019s fearless. \u00a0As we grow older we become careful people, afraid of failure, afraid of what other people will think, afraid of slipping. \u00a0All this is too bad, because the truth of it is that we have a good father who will yank us off the diving board, at least metaphorically, if it\u2019s beyond our capacities. \u00a0I know that we\u2019re called to wisdom, but I\u2019m not convinced that all prudence exercised in the prudence of God. \u00a0Maybe we need to get up early once in a while, or learn a language, or meet our neighbors, or take an art class.<\/p>\n
3. He complains, but doesn\u2019t run away. \u00a0That\u2019s a lot like King David. \u00a0He was a \u201cman after God\u2019s own heart\u201d but that doesn\u2019t mean he always loved everything God did. \u00a0To the contrary, he cried out, lamented, asked questions, and struggled, just like all kids do with their parents at times. \u00a0But he never gave God the finger and walked away. \u00a0He stayed engaged in relationship, just like 99.999% of all little kids do with their parents.<\/p>\n
Of course, all of this is only good metaphor if we\u2019re talking about good parents. \u00a0The parents I\u2019m watching this weekend, though are remarkable. \u00a0I watch them hauling big bags of stuff around so that, for any contingency, they\u2019re ready for their kids. \u00a0When Donna was with me earlier in the week I leaned over and said, \u201cI don\u2019t remember hauling a big bag around like that\u201d to which she replied, \u201cthat\u2019s because you didn\u2019t<\/em>\u2026 I did\u201d. \u00a0Maybe I\u2019ll carry the bag for the grandkids, now that I\u2019ve learned a little?<\/p>\nGood parents though, are a shadow of our good God<\/a>. \u00a0I often say to people, \u201cLook, if you want to talk about post-modernity, existentialism, Russian literature, philosophy of art, or the challenges of epistemology in the 21st century, I\u2019ll go there with you. \u00a0But at the root of my faith is this: \u00a0I\u2019m a little kid with the best dad in the universe, and he\u2019s giving me blessings every day, right in the midst of this broken world \u2013 sunrises, the capacity to forgive, good conversations, a nudge towards generosity, the chance to stick my feet in a stream, forgiveness when I\u2019ve blown it big time. \u00a0I wouldn\u2019t trade that kind of relationship for anything.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\nThe picture of Donna and I in our convertible smart car is a reminder that we\u2019re still kids too, at least when it comes to cars. \u00a0Now if only I can apply the truths to my walk with God!<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Tuesday, 3:30 PM, Forest Falls, California, by the side of the swimming pool. I\u2019m spending an hour lazing in the sun, making up for the last three hundred days in the raincity. \u00a0It\u2019s glorious. \u00a0When I\u2019m warm I dive in, and then lay down again, reading and chatting with guests until I\u2019m dry, and then […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-creation","category-intimacy"],"yoast_head":"\n
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