Come Out and Play!

Mark 10:15
"Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it."

What incredible joy I take in my one-year-old granddaughter, Virginia Rose! When my daughter and son-in-law bring her over for a visit, we lay an expansive coverlet over the living room rug, place her toys and her upon it, and revel in her antics and interactions with her playthings and with us. Her glowing smiles and contagious laughter reflect the love and attention she has most deservedly been given. Her abounding energy and curiosity is matched only by her guilelessness. She is trusting, open, loving, and living in the moment. Yes, Virginia, you awaken my dormant inner child, the one who wants to clap her hands and squeal in sheer delight just as you do, simply happy and in love with life.

God wants us to trust Him with the faith and love of an innocent child. Can we peel away the layers of life's sorrows, disappointments, and heartaches as we would an onion, stripping each off, one by painful one, until we reach the very core of our being where the child in us still dwells? Are we able to hear God's call to the child within: "Come out and play in My wondrous Kingdom!"? God is inviting you and me to take His hand as a child would a parent's, believing with all our hearts that He is all we need. Today, may you find yourself clapping your hands and squealing with joy as you play and frolic, a child born again, in the fields of the Lord!

Readings
Psalms97, 99, (100) or 94, (95)
2 Samuel 14:1-20
Acts 21:1-14
Mark 10:1-16