The 'unproductive' ones

Matthew 19 : 13 - 15

.....do not hinder them....

Are you childlike? Not childish but someone who, although fully grown, remains open to be surprised and filled with wonder and delight? Of course, there are children who have been abused and they indeed may be closed, untrusting and fearful. But consider this - knowing Christ allows us to remain childlike, seeing life from the vantage point of young children.

I realize that I have grown rather serious over the years. Sometimes, I wonder how and where I can learn to be more childlike again. One blessing of the recent years has been my dog. She has taught me many things about life and one of them is to laugh at her antics. It can be frustrating at times when she starts chewing up socks left on the floor. But when 'caught' with the socks right in her mouth, she says 'sorry' by raising her paw in a 'paw-shake'. And she is not 'young' in terms of dog years. At the ripe age of seven plus years (midlife for a dog) she still remains refreshingly playful.

If only we saw things through God's eyes, the many concerns of the world of adults need not give rise to over seriousness. Jesus saw the importance of children. Children in the ancient world had no rights, position or privileges of their own. Yet, in all their helplessness, they are esteemed by the Lord himself. He has time for those who are helpless in the eyes of society. To him, no one is useless, even when they are no longer 'productive' to society. We might imagine the scenario if Jesus had instead come upon a group of elderly invalids (in those days, people died early of illnesses, unlike now when life has been prolonged by many medical interventions). The world (sad to say, even some Christians) sees these people as an embarrassment (reminds us of our frailty and finiteness), to be put aside in a 'home'. But I imagine Jesus would embrace them freely, giving his time and attention to them. No hurry to get on with the 'important' things. Both the very young and the very old have a lot to teach us, if we ask God for the grace to see.