“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder
them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. “
-Mark
10:14
They saw us arrive into town that morning. They flooded in
through the doors of the church, arriving an hour before anything was set to
begin. They sat there, their little eyes
full of eagerness. They came in with joyful smiles that stretched all the way
from the corner of their faces through their beautiful eyes. Excitement filled the air and ran out the
doors and into the streets, their laughter was contagious throughout the
church.
We had one day, one day to spend with the children of
the community, a day that was set aside and created for them. We were going to do a vacation Bible school
of sorts, share with them a Bible story, teach them some songs, and play some
games with them.
We had invited
all the children inside the community. Hundreds flooded in. Faces that
pierce your heart and leave you aching for more of them. They have such an
innocence, such a joy, so much to be admired. To most people of the world these children have nothing. But once you live among them, you realize
they have everything. They understand
something so different, something so pure, and something of which we can all
learn from. They have joy. They have love. They have hope.
The hope they share is of a life worth living. Their love so pure, that they accept anyone
for whoever they are. They want your
love, your attention, and they want to give it in return. The smiles on their faces tell you how much
it means to them that you came in and spent time with them. They were eager to
learn of Jesus and the stories we shared with them. They soaked in every word we gave them.
We laughed together. We danced together. We shared
life together. In a day which was meant
to be be given to them, we were the ones who gained instead.
