Kid's are great. I met a brother and sister from the congregation on the street yesterday. I haven't seen them in five months but after a "hi David" they began a version of show and tell. Older sister pulled a poster for a Nintendo Wii game out of her backpack for me to see, then asked me to smell her new school eraser (lemon.) Little brother got me to look at an ant he had corralled on the sidewalk. I suppose they could have said "how was your summer?" or "how are you feeling?" but the "come and join my life" approach was just right.
Earlier in the day a St. Paul's mom told me that her daughter opened the letter I sent out to every household (she considers church mail fair game) and exclaimed "David's coming back!" I nodded in a ministerial fashion and mumbled something but inside the cockles of my heart warmed right up.
During the summer we attended a little country church with a tiny congregation. One Sunday I looked around and leaned over to Ruth to say that if there was a children's time we would qualify as the youngest people present. Nice folk but something or someone was missing.
I have said it before and I'll say it again. The children of a congregation bring an exuberance and joy that models the Christian message of abundant life. They minister to others (including the ministers) without knowing what ministry is. When they aren't in our midst we are impoverished.
2 comments:
Amen.
I completely agree. My placement is in a small congregation and the number of children can range from 2 to 10. (My two are always there!) Unfortunately, there are not any youth. This is a gap which I really miss. I used to really enjoy the youth group I worked with in Bowmanville. I hope to one day soon spend more of my time with youth and children.
P.S. - Good to have you back online!!
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